Pokémon Best Wishes: My Version
by TerrorKing10
Summary: Experience a remade version of Ash's journey through the Unova region; but this time, Hilda is his female travelling companion. (Contains Othelloshipping)
1. Welcome To Unova!

**Thanks to som****e advice from ****FanaticLAguy06****, I decided to create my own "redone" version of the Pokémon: Best Wishes series. Some chapters will be similar to the canon episodes but with my own twists, and others will be originals. This time however, Cilan and Iris won't be Ash's travelling companions. AshXHilda (Contains OthelloShipping)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or the Characters.**

_**Chapter 1: Welcome To Unova!**_

We join 15 year-old Ash Ketchum; a Pokémon trainer from Pallet Town in the Kanto region, as he, his long time partner Pikachu, mother Delia Ketchum and Professor Oak, are on a flight to the Unova region. A region where Ash plans to catch new Pokémon, challenge new gym leader, and of course, enter the Unova League.

"The Unova region." Ash said, reading about the region that they're flying to, "I bet there're all sorts of Pokémon I've never seen before!" he said with excitement evident in his tone.

"Of course," Professor Oak said, "It's filled with Pokémon; Pokémon you won't find in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, or Sinnoh." He informed Ash.

"Wow! That's awesome, I can't wait!" Ash exclaimed. "I hope we get there soon." He said looking out the window.

"Pika-chu!" the Mouse Pokémon chirped, equally excited about visiting a new region.

_**NARRATOR: We join Ash Ketchum, our Pallet Town Hero native to Kanto, and his long time partner Pikachu, as our favourite duo, along with Professor Oak and Delia Ketchum set a course for the infamous Unova region.**_

* * *

Meanwhile in Nuvema Town, a young, 14 year old girl was riding on a bicycle. She was a ponytailed brunette with blue eyes, who was wearing a white shirt under a black vest, a (very) short blue jean shorts that are ripped revealing her pockets, and black boots with pink shoelaces. She also wears a white cap with pink Pokéball symbol and beak, a black classy belt and a pink slingbag. Her ponytail was taken in by the wind as sheroad her bike.

"I can't wait to get to Professor Juniper's lab." The girl said merrily "In just a few moments, I'll have my very own Pokémon."

After a few more seconds, Hilda finally arrived at Professor Juniper's lab. The Lab was a metal structure, two stories tall, with a dome roof, giving it the appearance of three stories tall. A fenced in field was to the left, containing a herd of Miltank and Tarous.

After parking her bike near a tree, Hilda moved toward the double door and was surprised to see that it was automatic. She stepped inside as the door shot close.

"Hello?" the young girl called. She It was dark inside; no trace of anyone was there. A wooden counter was off to the left of the entrance and a winding staircase to the right. A small pond was positioned underneath the staircase with clusters of lily pads spread across the surface. Cattails lined the rim of the pond, drooping down. Hilda leaned over the blue water. Nothing broke the surface.

Then she noticed at the far end of the pond, a grey flap in the wall about two yards long. It wasn't transparent, so she couldn't see through to the other side. A piece of land was wrapped around the edge of the pond, patches of grass scattered about. She left the pond and continued searching for someone.

"Hello? Professor Juniper?" She called over and over again, her voice echoing through the halls.

"Are you looking for someone, miss?" a voice said from behind Hilda, causing her to jump a bit.

She turned around to see a tanned boy who looked older than she has spiky brown hair with squinty eyes, wearing an orange-and-gray vest, khaki pants, and blue-and-white sneakers.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle ya." The older teen said. "Pleasure to meet you." He said, offering her his hand.

"Uh, my name is Hilda." Hilda managed to say, using her right hand to shake while using her other hand to fix her cap, so that the pink Pokéball symbol was facing the front.

"Hilda?" the teen repeated until he remembered something. "Oh, that's right! Professor Juniper said you were coming." He puts a hand on his chest. "Where are my manners? My name is Brock, and I'm currently working as her assistant."

Hilda nodded in understanding. "I came here to choose my first Pokémon. Can I see Professor Juniper?" she asked.

"I'm sorry to say that Professor Juniper isn't here right now to help you." Brock apologised. "She went off to pick up some guests that'll be here soon. But she did say I can show you the Pokémon for you to choose from. Please, follow me."

Brock turned around and started walking down the hallway, Hilda following close behind. She still saw no break in the surface. Brock opened a door to the right of the pond and went through, as Hilda continued to follow.

Hilda's heart leaped when she stepped inside; it was like a large terrarium! Tropical plants were scattered about. A small waterfall flowed out from a large hole in the wall. It cascaded into a large lake in the centre of the room. The water flowed throughout the room like a river and into another hole in the wall. It must have led to the pond. Small creatures roamed the room. Birds, reptiles, mammalians, fish, amphibians! A Pidove flew overhead, landing on a thick tree at the far end of the room. A couple of Dwebble meandered down a far pathway, the two leaves on their heads, swaying as they moved. Wurmple crawled up trees, leaving a trail of goo behind. Beautifly danced in the air, sparkling dust lingering in the air. Tympole and Palpitoad played in the water, blue spray flying from the splashes. Zigzagoon wrestled in the bushes, uprooting plants as they roughhoused.

"This place is amazing!" Hilda breathed at the beautiful sight.

Brock chuckled, "Not bad, huh? Professor Juniper specially designed this terrain for the wild Pokémon to inhabit. My job as her assistant is to care and nurture them on a daily schedule."

Hilda followed Brock to a corner, where three Pokémon were eating bowls of Pokémon food.

The first Pokémon is a quadruped, pig-like creature that is primarily orange. It has oval eyes, a pink nose, and a thick yellow stripe on its snout. The upper portion of its head is dark brown, and its long, pointed ears are positioned closely together. It has short legs, and its front feet are dark brown. A dark brown band covers its lower back and rear. Its curly tail is tipped with a ruddy pink sphere.

The second is a bipedal, reptilian Pokémon with a slender build. Most of its body is green with a cream underside. A yellow stripe runs down the length of its back and tail, and it has yellow markings around its large eyes. Two curved yellow structures that resemble leaves or small wings protrude from its shoulders and bend backwards. Its slender arms have three fingers, while its tiny feet have no digits whatsoever. It has a large, palmate leaf with three prongs on the end of its tail.

And the third is a bipedal sea otter-like Pokémon. It has a spherical white head with small, triangular dark-blue ears on the sides. Its eyes are dark and its dark orange nose is shaped like a horizontal oval. Several freckles cover its cheeks, and two pointed teeth can be seen when it opens its mouth. The light blue fur on its body forms bubble shapes around its neck. Its arms are white and rounded while its feet are dark blue with three toes each. It also possesses a rudder-like dark blue tail. It carries a pale yellow seashell on its belly. This shell is made of the same material as its claws, and is used for both battle and cracking hard berries.

The three Pokémon's attention was caught by Brock and Hilda approaching them.

"Here they are, Hilda." Brock said to the girl. "These are the three Pokémon new trainers choose from when they begin their journey: Tepig, Snivy, and Oshawott." Brock said, his hand was outstretched and gesturing to them each.

"They all look so cute!" Hilda gushed at the small Pokémon's adorable appearances before her face fell. "Oh, but how will I decided which one I want?" she asked, more to herself than anyone else.

Brock thought about it, "Tell you what, Hilda. I'll give you a chance to spend some time with the Pokémon. That way, you can get to know them before you can decide which one you want."

Hilda looked at Brock in surprise, "Really?" she asked.

Brock nodded. "I'll come back to check on you in an hour." Brock said as he turned around, "Enjoy." He walked off, toward the door, closing it as he exited.

"This is gonna be hard."

* * *

Meanwhile at the docks, Ash, Oaks, and Delia's plane finally lands and the passengers board off.

Ash and Pikachu take in the fresh air, "We're here, Pikachu!"

"Pika!"

"Such a beautiful sight, isn't it?" Delia said.

"Our ride should be here any minute." Oak said.

Just then a jeep pulls up and honks its horn. In the driver seat is a woman in a lab coat. Only seems to be about 34 much younger than Professor Oak and just one year younger than Delia.

"Hey there, Professor Oak!" The woman says. "It's nice to see you again."

"Same here." Professor Oak said introducing the woman to Ash and Delia. "I'd like you to meet Professor Juniper, and don't let the youthfulness of one of the most important Unova region researchers full you." He added.

"Nice to meet you." Delia says warmly. "My name is Delia Ketchum."

"Hi Professor Juniper," Ash started. "My name is Ash Ketchum. This is my best buddy, Pikachu." He said, gesturing to his Electric-type partner.

"Pika-chu!" (Hey there!) Pikachu said.

"Pleasure to meet you!" the female professor said pleasantly.

With introductions finished, everyone hopped into Professor Juniper's car, and drove off into the road, on their way to her lab. Ash and Pikachu noticed that they drove by pink, deer-like Pokémon. His fascination grew as said Pokémon ran by. Gray pidgeon-like Pokémon flew above them, and he also saw small brown rodent-like Pokémon scurry away. This increased Ash's excitement; he could hardly wait to get to the lab so he could start his journey.

* * *

Back at the lab: Hilda stared at the three Pokémon. They stared at her, smiles on their faces. She thought it out. Which to choose? She looked at the Snivy, who was sleeping under a tree. It was a Grass-type, later evolving into a large serpent-like Pokémon. She then looked at Oshawott, who was the nearest to the water; that spelled out Water-type. She knew it would later become the kind of Pokémon that's practically a master swordsman. Her shifted his gaze over to Tepig, who was sniffing flowers. It was a Fire-Type; it would later become a Fire/Fighting-type. It was unique because it was the only one of the three to gain a secondary type after evolving. It seemed as though it had the playful aspect, as it was skipping around as Hilda watched it, deep in thought.

"Dove-dove-Pidove!" A flock of gray-pidgeon like pokemon flew by, flapping their wings firmly. Hilda saw that they were flying toward a large gap in the ceiling, it seemed as though it was for the flying Pokémon to go in and out freely.

"Tepig?" The bird's caught Tepig's attention and he started walking toward the open gap.

"Te! Tepig! Pig!" It hopped onto a stone and into a nearby tree, climbing toward the hole in the roof, which was noticed by Hilda.

"Tepig, where are you going!" Hilda shouted, running toward the tree. "Come back here!"

Tepig disappeared over the roof's edge.

"NO!" Hilda shrieks, climbing the tree and crossing the frail branch. She reaches the edge of the roof and looks down, to see Tepig racing off into the forest;s he sighs in relief and climbs over the edge. There was a long net that drooped down from the roof to the ground. Before she went, she turned to the two remaining starters. "I'm going to get Tepig back. You two stay here."

Once Hilda disappeared over the edge, the two Pokémon looked at each other.

"Osha/Sniv." The nodded respectively and started moving toward the hole in the ceiling, going after Hilda and Tepig.

* * *

Professor Juniper's car pulled into the dirt driveway of the Lab, the thick dust, falling to the ground. Everyone got out of the jeep and started for the large, automatic door. Before they reach it, the two doors slide open and reveal a certain squinty-eyed fellow.

"Welcome back, Profe-" Brock trailed off the moment he set eyes on the people Professor Juniper brought with her. Ash, Pikachu, Professor Oak did likewise the moment they saw him.

"Ash, is that you?" he asked.

The group instantly perked up. "It's Brock!" Ash exclaimed.

"Pi Pika-Chu!"

Brock smiled as well, "Ash, it's been a long time. I know Professor Juniper said she was bringing over some special guests, but I never thought it was you, you mom and Professor Oak."

"Oh, you've all met before?" Professor Juniper asked.

"Why yes," Professor Oak said. "Brock is an acquaintance of ours, as well as a long time companion of Ash's."

"It's been so long, Brock." Delia smiled. "I trust that you are well."

"Likewise, ." Brock replied politely.

Juniper smiled, "Then I guess introductions aren't necessary. Why don't you all follow me inside?"

* * *

Meanwhile; Hilda searched the underbrush chaotically. She shook trees and rummaged through bushes, but there was no sign of Tepig.

"Tepig? Tepig, where are you?" she shouted, her voice echoing in the distance, ricocheting through the mountainous forests. She moved with purpose, starting at a walk and working her way up to a jog. Minutes later, she was running, the fallen leaves crackling underfoot. "Tepig!" She continued calling for the Fire-type, despite the fact that there was no answer. Pretty soon she stopped for a rest, sinking down under a tree.

Hilda sighed. "I'm not even a trainer yet, and I already lost a Pokémon." She started to worry, "Professor Juniper will kill me if she finds out one of her Pokémon is missing." Then there was a rustle in the bushes.

"Tepig?!" Hilda leaned forward in anticipation. Suddenly…

"Snivy!/Osha-wott!" Snivy and Oshawott sprung out of the bush, startling Hilda and causing her to fall flat on her butt.

"Ow, that hurts." Hilda complained while rubbing her rear before looking at Snivy and Oshawott.

"You two?" she asked before she frowned. "What are you two doing here? I thought I told you to stay at the lab."

"Vy?" Snivy made a confused face.

"Osha." Oshawott looked a bit sad and hurt by Hilda's scolding.

Hilda's face softened. "I'm sorry; it's just that, Professor Juniper isn't gonna be happy when she finds out that one of you is missing. That's why I have to find Tepig quick."

"TEPIG!" the sound of Tepig caught their attention. Hilda turned in the direction of the sound.

"That sounded like Tepig. Let's go!" Hilda jumped up and shot through the forest toward the sound of Tepig; with Snivy and Oshawott close behind. Tepig was in sight, curled up on the ground, crying and trembling in fear.

Hilda kneeled down in front of the frightened Fire-type, "Tepig, what's wrong?" Hilda asked. Then she notices the swarm of Spinarak and an Ariados, crawling toward them from all directions. The three Pokémon cowered behind Hilda's legs, frightened of the large Bug-types moving toward them.

The lead Ariados hissed in anger. It must've meant for Hilda to move out of the way.

With that, she spoke. "No, I won't let you have them!"

The Ariados hissed again, and Hilda resisted the urge to run away.

"If you want them, you'll have to get through me first!" Hilda shot back.

The large Ariados crept forward until it was within reaching distance.

Hilda stood there, determined to keep the Pokémon safe. A small part of her was scared beyond belief, but she'd never forgive herself if she left the Pokémon in the Bug/Poison-type's possession. The Ariados held back no longer; a milky white webbing shot forward at Hilda and enveloped her, pinning her to the ground. The three helpless Pokémon cowered still behind Hilda. The Ariados changed its target.

A guilty looking Tepig watched. He knew that this was all his fault, if he had not wandered off, Hilda and the other two Pokémon wouldn't have been led to danger. "Te-pig." The Fire-type made a serious face.

Ariados reached its leg out, but had no chance to slice open its prey. A flame flew through the air and hit the Ariados square in the head. The large insect recoiled, stumbling backwards into a large boulder.

A surprised Hilda looked up to see Hilda standing in front of her, with a look of pure determination. "TEPIG!" A fierce grunt gushed up his throat and let loose, booming through the forest. He took a step forward and let out another fierce grunt. "Tepig" (Back off) he said to Ariados.

The Ariados didn't budge, it just stared in disbelief. The orb at the end of Tepig's tail glows orange. "Teeeee-PIIIIIIG!" He releases a large, spiralling stream of red-orange embers from his nose. It struck the Ariados's leg and lacerated it, making the Ariados fall face first into the dirt. "Tepig Tepig Tepig, TEPIG!" the Fire Pig Pokémon charged forward and slammed his body into Ariados with great force, sending the Long Leg Pokémon flying backward and crashing into the same boulder. It slumped to the ground, now with swirls in its eye.

The many Spinarak raced toward the injured Ariados and carried it off into the forest.  
Hilda and the three Pokémon stared in the direction of the fleeing bugs for a while, ready for if they returned. Once they were sure the Pokémon were gone, Tepig turned to Hilda and checked to see if she was okay.

"Te-Tepig." he whimpered as though he cared for her. He used ember on the webbing to burn them off, but was sure to hold back so as to not burn Hilda too. Hilda stood back up, dusted herself off and looked Tepig in the eyes.

"Tepig!" the little Fire Pig Pokémon grunted in a happy tone.

Hilda smiled and picked up Tepig. "You saved me from that Ariados, Tepig. Thank you." She said.

* * *

Ash, Brock, Delia and Professor Oak were in the waiting room, well, waiting for Professor Juniper to return.

"It's so good to see you again, Brock." Professor Oak said to the former Pewter Gym Leader. "I trust your quest to becoming a Pokémon doctor is going well?"

Brock nodded. "Yes. I've been pretty busy, but I'm making a lot of progress too. Still, there's a lot more I need to learn."

"Hey Brock," Ash spoke "If you're trying to become a doctor, what are you doing working as Professor Juniper's lab assistant?"

Brock made a sheepish look. "Well... after I arrived to Unova, I was kinda low on supplies, and not to mention broke. Luckily, Professor Juniper offered me a part time job as one of her lab assistants. So for a while, I would take care of her Pokémon or make sure they're ready for their new trainers." he explained.

"Sounds like your goal was pretty delayed, huh?" Ash remarked.

Brock chuckled a bit, "Yeah...but I've got enough out of it, so I should be ready to continue on my journey from here."

Just then the female Professor came through the door with a brown package in hand.

"I'm back," Juniper said. "And I have something for you, Ash." she placed it down in front of Ash.

"What's in it?" Ash asked.

"Why don't you open it, and find out?" Juniper replied, not wanting to spoil it.

Ash did so, and proceeded to open the package. He unwound the brown string wrapped around the box and tore the cardboard apart. His face brightened as he saw what was waiting for him: a brand new Pokédex. Instead of just the basic red, it was black too. A thick black stripe ran up the side of it and down the back and a blue light shone with bright luminescence in the top right-hand corner. When he opened the Pokédex, a voice clicked on and said _"Hello."_

"Wow, a brand new Pokédex!" Ash exclaimed. "Thanks Professor."

"You're welcome, Ash." Juniper replied. "It has all the basic information you need on every Pokémon in Unova, including ones from other regions. It acts as a compass and contains a map on its memory. So there's no need in getting lost now." The professor chuckled.

She then handed over to Ash, five Pokéballs and a badge case. "And here are some Pokéballs you can use to catch any wild Pokémon you come across. And you can use the badge case to store gym badges. I trust you'll use them well."

Ash nodded as he took the Pokéballs and badge case.

Everyone's attention was drawn to the sound of the automatic door. They all saw Hilda step inside, Tepig at her side, Snivy and Oshawott behind her. He paused when she saw that three other people were with Professor Juniper and Brock, but when her eyes locked on Ash, she went slightly wide eyed. Ash also couldn't help but stare at the girl with the pink and white hat. She was the most beautiful girl he has ever seen (next to Misty). The girl also seems to be staring back at Ash; both trainers have a faint trace of blush on their faces. Ash feels that he somehow knows this beautiful girl from childhood. She also feels the same way, but neither couldn't.

Their momentary daze was interrupted when Professor Juniper spoke.

"Everyone, this is Hilda. She came over to choose her Pokémon."

"Hello there." Delia said warmly.

"It's quite a pleasure, young lady." Professor Oak said.

"Hi. " Hilda said as she went up to Ash and shook his hand. "Hey there my name is Hilda. I'm from here in Nuvema Town."

"My name is Ash Ketchum. I'm from Pallet Town in Kanto." Ash said. "This is my best friend and first Pokemon that I received from Professor Oak over there. His name is Pikachu."

"Pika-Pikachu."

Ash then looked at the Pokémon accompanying Hilda. "Who are those Pokémon?" he asked.

"Those, Ash, are the three starter Pokémon new trainers choose from when they start out their journey in Unova." Brock explained.

Ash decided to use this as a chance to try out his new Pokédex. First, he scans the pig-like Pokémon.

_**"Tepig, the Fire Pig Pokémon. Normally, fire shoots out of Tepig's snout, but it shoots out smoke instead when it is feeling ill."**_

Then he scans the green, snake-like Pokémon.

_**"Snivy, the Grass Snake Pokémon. Cool, calm, and collected, Snivy uses photosynthesis to collect energy with the leaf on its tail."**_

Finally, he scans the blue otter-like Pokémon.

_**"**__**Oshawott, the Sea Otter Pokémon. Oshawott **__**attacks **__**and defends using the **__**scalchop **__**that can be removed from its stomach."**_

"So Hilda, have you made your choice?" Professor Juniper asked.

"I sure did." Hilda said with a nod. "I'll take Tepig."

"Tepig!" Tepig looked up at her and gave a happy snort, rubbing his head against her leg.

Hilda smiled. Then the professor leaned back and grabbed a small backpack, handing it to Hilda. "Here you go, Hilda. It contains all the basic necessities for your journey with you Pokémon. I hope you have a grand time, and hope to hear from you again soon."

Hilda peered into the backpack and saw a Pokédex and five Pokéballs stuffed away at the bottom. Tepig's was at the top.

"Thanks, professor. I'll put 'em to good use." Hilda thanked.

"I'm surprised Tepig agrees to go with you." The professor said.

"Why's that?" Hilda asked.

"Well, it takes a lot of trust for that Pokémon there to say yes. We've had this little rascal for almost two years now. We've only had Snivy and Oshawott for a couple of months. Every time someone wants him, he refuses. But now…" the professor looked down at the fiery pig. "Now he's actually going to leave."

"Oh he'll be leaving alright." Said a female voice.

Suddenly, a crash was heard outside. Everyone looked in the direction of the door and then started for it, wondering what was happening. They gathered outside and looked around for the location the noise came from. Then out of nowhere, a large robotic structure cavorted from the forest and onto the large field. It stopped at the middle and a platform rose from the front of it, revealing two figures and a cat: Jesse, James, and Meowth.

"But with us!" Jessie said with a sneer.

"Team Rocket!" Ash cried. Pikachu grumbled under his breath, anger written on his face. He leaped down from Ash's shoulder and on the ground in front of him.

"Who're they?" Hilda asked, stepping beside them.

"Thieves! They've been stealing Pokémon for a living and bringing them back to their boss. At least that's what they're trying to do. They've been following me for almost four years now, trying to take Pikachu from me, and they won't take him today."

Snivy, Oshawott, and Tepig lined up by Pikachu and let out deep growls. Sparks were flying from Pikachu's red cheek pouches. "Pika!" he jumped in the air. He crouched low to the ground as Team Rocket pressed a button on a steel box.

A metal hand shot from the robot's body and clutched the four Pokémon, pulling them back and holding them high in the air, far out of reach. Everyone gasped at the sight.

Team Rocket started to chant:  
"Bringing the white light of evil into the future!"

"Thrusting the hammer of justice on to the black darkness of the universe!"

"And Carving our names on to the rock of eternity!"

"The fiery destroyer I am Jessie!"

"With thunderous emotion I am James!"

"Wisest of the wise I am Meowth!"

"Now gather under the name Team Rocket!"

"Wobbuffet!"

"Gimme back my Pikachu!" Ash shouted, anger and annoyance evident in his voice.

"And don't forget Tepig, Snivy and Oshawott while you're at it!" Hilda shouted.

Jesse sneered while James laughed, saying "We got Pikachu! And you can't get him back!" The platform lowered back into the robot as the group of people watched the struggling Pokémon in horror.

Ash stares up at Pikachu, unable to do a thing but worry. He could hear the shouts of Hilda as she yelled for Tepig. Ash saw continuously Pikachu try to escape the large robotic hand, but failed.

"Pika-CHUUUUUUU!" Pikachu shocked the hand with a bolt of electricity, but it did absolutely nothing. "Pika?!" (What the?!)

"Haven't you learned already?" Meowth snickered. "We design the robots nowadays to withstand your stupid electric shocks. There's no escaping this time, bozo. That goes for you guys too; it's fire proof, water proof, grass proof, nothing can penetrate this baby!"

"But is it rock proof!" Brock asked as he grasped a Pokéball. "Sudowoodo, let's go!" he threw into the air, and in a bright light flashing at the ground. A rather strange looking Pokémon emerged. It has a brown, log-shaped body with yellow spots. It has short legs with toeless feet and thin forelegs with three green spheres at the ends. It has a forked "branch" on top of its head; it was long indicating that it is a male. Despite its tree-like appearance, its composition is closer to a rock than a plant.

"Sudo-Woodo!" the Imitation Pokémon said.

"That puny thing? What's it gonna do? Nothing!" Jessie mocked.

"We'll see about that, Sudowoodo, use Double-Edge!" Brock commanded.

"Sudooooooo," Sudowoodo ran towards the robot, its body coated in a golden aura. "Woodo!" the Rock-type slammed its body against the robot, leaving a deep dent in the leg.

"Now use Hammer Arm!" Brock continued.

"Sudo!" Sudowoodo's whole left arm glows white before he slammed it against the same leg, leaving another dent.

"Enough of this!" Jessie snapped. "Seviper, on the double!" she tossed a Pokéball and in a bright flash of light, the Long Snake Pokémon materialized.

"Se-viper!" the Poison-type hissed.

"Seviper, use Poison Tail!" The Seviper's tail glowed purple as it slithered forward toward the Imitation Pokémon.

"Dodge it, then use Stone Edge!" Brock ordered.

Seviper slashed at Sudowoodo, but the Rock-type jumped out of the way.

"Sudooooo," Sudowoodo crosses its arms in front of him. Its body then becomes surrounded in white energy for a moment and the energy comes off its body in the form of two rings of jagged white energy orbs that floated around him. The white energy then fades, forming the orbs into gray jagged stones. "Woodo!" Sudowoodo opens his arms and fires the stones at Seviper, pelting the poison serpent repeatedly.

"Carnivine, use Bullet Seed!" James yelled, throwing a Pokéball and out came a green Pokémon resembling a Venus Flytrap. Its circular eyes have small pupils, and it has spiky teeth. Its stem is yellow with green spots, with red and green vines beneath with the appearance of tentacles.

"Carni-VINE!" the Bug Catcher Pokémon opens its mouth and fires multiple gold seeds surrounded in a light green aura.

"Hey! Two against one isn't fair!" Hilda complained.

Sudowoodo found himself being pelted by the Bullet Seed, causing him super-effective damage.

"Poison Tail!" Jessie shouted confidently.

"Viper!" Seviper slammed its glowing purple tail against Sudowoodo, sending the Rock-type flying backwards and crashing against Hilda's bike.

Hilda stared in shock, "My bike!"

Sudowoodo struggled to get back on his feet, as Seviper and Carnivine slowly and menacingly approached him.

"We have to do something," Ash said. "I'm not sure how long Sudowoodo can keep this up alone."

Hilda thought about it for a second before an idea popped in her head, "Tepig, listen to me!" Hilda suddenly called out, catching the Fire-type's attention. "Use Ember on the glass."

"Tepig," the Fire Pig Pokémon nodded. "Piiiiiiiig!" he let loose a stream of fiery sparks from its nose.

"Now Oshawott, use Water Gun on the same spot!" Hilda instructed.

"Oshaaaaa," the Sea Otter pokemon puffed its cheeks up "Woooooot!" he sprayed a jet of water at the glass in front of it.

"I see what you're doing," Ash said, catching on to Hilda's plan. "Pikachu, use Iron Tail on the spot!"

"And Snivy, use Leaf Blade!" Hilda yelled.

Pikachu's tail gathered energy into his tail, coating it in hard steel, at the same time the leaf on the tip if Snivy's tail glowed green.

"Pika!/Sni-Vy!" the Mouse Pokémon and the Grass Snake Pokémon both slammed their tails against the glass with full force. A crack appeared.

"It's working. Do it again!" Ash yelled.

Pikachu and Snivy did as instructed, this time, the glass shattering and the four Pokémon started falling from the glass container in the robotic hand. Ash and Hilda ran forward to catch their Pokémon.

"Pikachu!" Ash catches his Electric-type.

"Tepig!" Hilda catches her Fire-type.

Brock and Professor Juniper caught Snivy and Oshawott respectively.

"Now Pikachu, let's finish this! Use Thunderbolt!"

"Pikaaaaa," Pikachu gathered electrical energy in his cheek pouches. "CHUUUUUUUUU!" the Mouse Pokémon let loose a powerful bolt of yellow electricity from his body and towards Team Rocket, Seviper and their giant robot.

The robot exploded, debris flying through the air. The three thieves flew through the air and out of sight.

"A new region, but the same ole send-off." James retorted as they flew through the air.

"Shut it." Jesse said.

"Well, we should say it anyway." Meowth added.

"We're blasting off again." The three of them sang as they flew off into the distance, a glint appeared in the sky.

"We did it!" Ash cheered.

"Alright!" Hilda also cheered before sharing a hi-five with Ash. The Pokémon were rejoicing at their victory.

"You and Tepig make quite a team, Hilda." Ash complimented.

Hilda blushed a bit, "Thanks, so do you and Pikachu." she complimented back. "He really is something."

"Yeah, Pikachu is the best partner a trainer could ask for." Ash said, rubbing Pikachu's head, causing him to purr from the affection.

Hilda took out her Pokédex and directed it towards the Electric-type.

**_"Pikachu, the Mouse Pokémon, and the evolved form of Pichu. Pikachu's tail is sometimes struck by lightning as it raises it to check its surroundings."_**

"So cool" Hilda said to herself.

"Tepig!"

* * *

After everything was settled, Ash and Pikachu were prepared to leave.

"The nearest city with a gym from here is in Aspertia City." Professor Juniper "There, you'll meet a gym leader named Cheren. Challenge him to a battle, and if you win, you'll earn your first gym badge."

"Aspertia City, got it." Ash nodded.

"On your way there, you'll arrive at Accumula Town first. Before Aspertia City, you can register for the Unova League at the Accumula Town Pokémon Centre."

"Right, thanks Professor." Ash said. "Looks like we're all set, Pikachu."

"PikaPika!"

"Hey Ash," Hilda said, catching the Kanto native's attention. "Can I travel with you through Unova?" she asks, a faint blush on her cheeks. "After all, I grew up here, for the most part anyway. My mom wanted me to wait until I turned 14 before I could start my journey. You don't mind if I go with you do you?"

Ash smiled in a friendly manner "I don't mind; if Pikachu doesn't mind." he said as he turned to his Pokemon. "Is it okay for Hilda to travel with us?"

"Pika-chu!" (Of course it is!) Pikachu nods and jumps from Ash's shoulder to Hilda's shoulder and nuzzles her.

"It looks like Pikachu wants you to come with us, Hilda." Ash said. "I think it would be a great idea for you to travel with us."

"Thank you Ash!" Hilda exclaimed. "Thank you!" she then inadvertently hugged Ash, which caught him off guard. A slight blush appeared on Ash's cheeks as he hugged her back.

"I think we will be a good team!" Ash remarked.

"So do I!" Hilda said.

"You know, Ash." Brock said, catching his attention. "I have been wanting to explore around Unova for a while now. How about I come along too?" he suggested.

Ash's smile only widened. "Of course you can, it'll be like old times."

With that Ash, Hilda and Brock said goodbye to Delia, Professor Oak, and Professor Juniper. However Professors Oak and Juniper stopped them.

"I think you should take these with you." Professor Juniper said as she handed Ash a blue Cross-Transceiver, a pink one to Hilda, and a green one to Brock. "These will help you keep in touch with me better along with Professor Oak."

"That's a good idea." Ash said as he put his on. "Thank you Professor Juniper!"

"We will be sure to keep in touch." Hilda said as she put hers on. "What are these anyway?"

"They are called Cross-Transceivers." Brock answered. "They're special devices that have all the functions of a Pokegear, Poketch, and Pokenav all into one." he explained, remembering Professor Juniper telling him the same things.

"That's right, and they're the latest things in Unova too." Professor Oak added.

"Thank you so much both of you." Hilda said. "It was nice to meet you Mrs. Ketchum, Professor Oak."

"Likewise!" Delia said. "Take care of my boy!"

Hilda giggles at that. "I sure will Mrs. Ketchum." Hilda says.

"You three should be sure to take care of each other and watch each other's backs." Professor Juniper said.

"That is the best thing to do." Professor Oak said.

Ash, Hilda and Brock nodded as they were off for an exciting journey through Unova. And Now, their Unova journey has commenced.

**_NARRATOR: Where one adventure ends, another begins! Ash and Pikachu set a course to Accumula Town, where he can register for the Unova League. And he is accompanied by his old friend Brock, and the aspiring new trainer Hilda. What does Unova have in store for our friends? Only time will tell, as their journey together has begun._**

As our heroes walked off, a certain Grass-type was watching them from a distance. Its eyes were particularly locked on a certain squinty-eyed individual in the group.

"Sni,"

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_

**And there you have it, the first chapter. I hoped you all liked it as much as I did. The gym leaders that Ash will face and their order will be the same as Black 2 and White 2. So that's why Cheren is gonna be first. For all you Cilan fans, he will appear at some point in the story, but that'll be much later. ABut Iris and Axew will make their debut in the next chapter.**

**Any way, PLEASE REVIEW and see you next time for the second chapter _"Enter Iris and Axew!"_.**


	2. Enter Iris and Axew!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.**

**Sorry to those of you who waited. I was busy with exams. But now that my final exams are over, I'm free for the rest of the year, so you can expect faster updates for this story, and others.**

**_Chapter 2: Enter Iris and Axew!_**

_**NARRATOR: We join Ash and Pikachu, who are on their way to Accumula Town while they are accompanied by their longtime friend Brock, and their newest friend and inspiringly new Pokémon trainer Hilda. Suddenly…**_

"Pika?" Pikachu said as his ears twitched.

"Something wrong, Pikachu?" Ash asked his partner and best friend.

"PiPikachu." (Something's coming.) Pikachu replied.

Soon enough, Ash, Hilda and Brock also felt some slight vibrations under their feet. Suddenly, a spinning, brown blur emerged from the ground, surprising the teens. Once the blur ceased the spinning and landed in front of the group, they immediately recognized it as a Pokémon.

The Pokémon had a short, wide body with two small, ovoid feet with three toes each. Its body is mostly black, but has a jagged, navy blue stripe that runs diagonally around its torso from its left shoulder. It is connected at the bottom to another stripe, which extends around the base of its torso. It has a white face with a long snout, tipped by its pink nose. Its eyes are at the base of its nose on either side. Its arms are wide and thin with a blue spot on its palms. It lacks normal hands, as its arms form directly into its three, extremely large claws. It has a very small, stubby tail.

"Dril." The brown Pokémon said.

"What Pokémon is that?" Hilda asked to no one in particular.

"That's a Drilbur." Brock answered, remembering some of the Unova native Pokémon Professor Juniper told him about. "And it's a Ground-type Pokémon."

Ash took out his Pokédex and scanned the mole-like Pokémon; it's image appearing on the screen.

_**"Drilbur, the Mole Pokémon. By putting both of its claws together and rotating at high speed, Drilbur is able to move through soil as easily as moving through air."**_

Ash thought about catching it, but thought better of it.

"Hilda, I think you should catch it." Ash said. "I've had my share of Pokémon catches in the past, but since you're a first time trainer, it's only fair you go first."

Hilda was surprised, and then she smiled. "Thank you, Ash!" Hilda said as she excitedly hugged Ash causing him to blush. Ash thought about releasing Hilda, but thought better of it and hugged Hilda back. This caused Hilda to blush. Noticing their close proximity, they quickly broke apart. "S-sorry Ash." Hilda said sheepishly with a hand behind her back in an Ash-like manner.

"I-I'm the one that should be sorry." Ash said with the same pose as Hilda. "I was completely out of line."

"Why don't we just agree to disagree?" Hilda asked.

"That sounds good to me." Ash said.

The two didn't notice, but Brock smirked at them. He could easily tell that there was more to why Hilda hugged Ash like that.

"You better catch that Pokémon before it gets away." Ash added.

"Right." Hilda nodded, pulling out a Pokéball "Okay Tepig, Battle Time!" Hilda said as she threw the Pokéball and in a bright flash of blue-and-white light, the Fire-type starter of Unova materialized.

"_*snort* _Tepig!" the Fire Pig Pokémon grunted, releasing some embers from his snout. His eyes landed on Drilbur and he positioned himself in a ready-for-battle stance.

"Drilbur!" the Mole Pokémon glared at his opponent.

"Tepig, give Drilbur a taste of your Ember!" Hilda commanded.

The orb at the end of Tepig's tail glows orange. "Teeeee-PIIIIIIG!" He releases a large, spiraling stream of red-orange embers from his nose and it hits Drilbur in the face, making the Mole Pokémon cringed as some of it got in its eyes.

"Great, no follow up with a Tackle attack!" Hilda continued.

"Tepig-Tepig-Tepig-Tepig-Tepig," the Fire Pig Pokémon charged forward, ready to slam his body into Drilbur. However, the Mole Pokémon was prepared this time. It puts its arms up to its head and forms its body into a drill. It then rotates its body quickly and charges forward while floating through the air, stabbing Tepig with its drill-like body.

"TEEEEEE!" Tepig cried in pain as Hilda, Ash, Pikachu and Brock stare in shock.

"Tepig, no!" Hilda said with worry as she picked up her now unconscious Tepig, while Drilbur dug a hole and disappeared into it.

"Tepig, are you okay?" she asked her Pokémon.

"Pig…" the semi-conscious Fire-type managed to groan.

"Tepig being a Fire-type and battling a Ground-type like Drilbur, it's just not a good match-up." Brock pointed out.

"That's okay, Hilda." Ash assured "I didn't succeed with my first capture attempt either. There's always next time."

Hilda sighed. "I guess, Tepig, return." She held Tepig's Pokéball, and it was retracted in a beam of red light.

They group were about to continue their walk, when…

"Pika!" Pikachu points to a bush moving nearby. They also see a large dark purple shape constantly moves.

Ash raises an eyebrow and pulls out his Pokédex again, holding it up to the shape. "A Pokémon?"

The Pokédex screen showed a bipedal, grayish-green Pokémon with pale, straight tusks protruding from the sides of its mouth. The back of its head is dark grayish-green with a tall, slightly curved horn. Large, dark grayish-green ovals surround its red eyes, and it has a short, rounded snout with large nostrils. A forest green collar marking encircles its neck. Its limbs and tail are short, with its forelimbs having three digits and its feet having two digits.

**_"Axew, the Tusk Pokémon. Axew marks its territory by making scratch marks on trees with its tusks, which regrow if they fall out."_**

Ash and Brock make confused looks while Hilda frowns. The Pokémon on the Pokédex screen is a green Dragon-like Pokémon, not a spot of purple on it.

"It doesn't look anything like in the Pokédex." Hilda stated.

"Wonder why that is?" Brock asked.

"Who cares?" Ash shrugged, taking out a Pokéball. "I'll catch it anyway! Now, go, Pokéball!"Ash throws the red-and-white sphere, and it touches the purple shape.

Suddenly, it shrieks. "Ouch!"

"Ouch?!" the surprised Ash, Hilda and Brock say in unison.

The purple shape moves, and a dark-skinnedgirl (holding a berry) is revealed. The purple seems to be her hair, tied back with yellow bangles in thick ponytails that resemble petals of an iris blossom. "Okay, what was that for?!" She glares at Ash and stomps towards him. She was a long-sleeved yellow shirt with a small pink skirt and a bow around her waist. She wore white pants and pink and white shoes.

Swallowing, Ash held up his hands in defense. "See, I was only trying to catch a Pokémon."

The girl raises her eyebrow. "Oh, so what you're really telling me is that I look like a Pokémon. Your Pokédex_—"She smiles."—_is this cute face in there?_—"Angry face."—_ Tell me: is it?!" she demanded

Ash flinched. "No! Uh..."

Hilda narrowed her eyes, she didn't like the way this girl was acting towards Ash over an honest mistake.

"Hey, cut him some slack!" Hilda warned the girl. "You're acting like he did it on purpose!"

The girl looked like she was about to retort when Brock decided to intervene. "Now, now, let's all just calm down." His signature voice of reason catching their attention. "There's no need to take things personally over an honest mistake."

"Yeah, sorry, okay?" Ash said.

The girl's glare softens. "Fine. I accept your apology. But you've got a long way to go as a Trainer if you think I look like a Pokémon. Right, Axew?"

Creepily, the small Dragon-type Pokémon pops out of her hair and smiles. "Axew! Axew!" it said in a high-pitched voice as it took the berry the girl was holding.

The three gasped; one because they've found the Pokémon in the Pokédex, and two because it came out of her hair.

"So that's where it was." Brock stated.

Hilda made a face. "What kind of weirdo carries their Pokémon in their hair?"she asked.

The girl would've retorted to that smart-aleck remark from Hilda had her eyes notland on Pikachu. She gasps awe. "Whoa! No way! A Pikachu?!" Out of nowhere, she grabs him and squeezes him in a rather tight hug. "You've got to be the sweetest thing ever! And these jiggly cheeks... You can't find anything this jiggly in Unova!" she said, playing with his cheeks.

"Pikapika!" Pikachu growls, struggling to break free from the girl's grip. One would think that Pikachu would be used to being over-affectionately cuddled by girls by now.

"First time seeing a Pikachu in person?" Brock asked, somewhat amused.

"Uh-huh." The girl nodded as she continued to squeeze the life out of Pikachu. "Well, I for one, am dying to know what a Pikachu is doing here! Oh come on! Tell me, tell me, tell me!" she pleaded.

"We're from Pallet Town in the Kanto region." Ash answered.

"Pallet Town?" Iris repeated.

Ash nods. "Yeah! I'm Ash, and I wanna enter the Unova League!"

"I'm Hilda, and I just became a trainer." Hilda said next.

"And my name's Brock; Pokémon Doctor in training." Brock finished the introduction.

"Isn't that nice?" The girl smiles. "It's nice to meet you three. I'm Iris." Suddenly, Pikachu releases his electricity, shocking her with a powerful bolt. She shrieks and falls to the ground, muttering something.

Sweatdrops appear on the three's temples as they awkwardly chuckle.

* * *

After a moment, Iris soon recovered from. "Sorry 'bout that," Iris apologizes. The Mouse Pokémon just twitches his ear in annoyance. Iris turns to me. "I get a little carried away when I'm around new cute Pokémon"

Ash chuckles, "Believe me, you're not the first."

Then, Hilda caught something in the corner of her eye. She looks up to and sees a small, gray chinchilla-like creature running into the meadow. She stood up, smiling. "The Pokémon from Professor Juniper's lab!" She ran off after the Pokémon.

"Hey, Hilda, what are you doing?" Ash called.

"Where're you going?" Brock also as he and Ash; Pikachu on his shoulder, chase after her.

"Hey!" Iris calls after them. "Wait up, guys! Hold on!" she said before running after them.

They finally catch up to Hilda, who is hiding behind a bush, noticing that sees watching something up ahead.

They look just above the bush they're hiding behind and Hilda gasps. "Wow..." she got a better look of the furry, gray Chinchilla-like Pokémon and saw that it had scruffs of fur on its head and neck. It has large ears on the sides of its head with red insides partly covered by tufts of fur. It has large, brown eyes and a small, dot-like nose. Its limbs are somewhat rounded and small, and its ears and tail have white tips. The tail is also long and particularly furry.

Hilda took out her Pokédex and scanned it.

"_**Minccino, the Chinchilla Pokémon. Minccino loves shiny things and will use its tail as a brush to clean any objects that are dirty."**_

As if to prove the device's point, the Minccino was cleaning an apple with its tail, making it nice and shiny before eating it.

"Minccino likes things that are clean and tidy, and its tail makes a pretty convenient brush." Brock explained.

"I always did wanna Minccino." Hilda said with a smile. She then became serious, "Alright, I'm going in." and stood forward. "Okay, Tepig, Battle time!" throwing the Pokéball, the Fire Pig Pokémon materialized a few feet away from Minccino.

"Tepig!" Tepig let out a strong snort, releasing some embers, signifying it recovered from its battle with the wild Drilbur and was ready to make up for it.

"Min?" Minccino noticed Tepig. It then made an annoyed face, indicating it was angry for having its lunch interrupted, before it too got into a battle stance.

"Use Tackle!" Hilda ordered.

Tepig charges at Minccino with full speed, but the furry Pokémon dodges.

"That Minccino sure is fast." Brock says.

"Pika..." Pikachu says.

"Try an Ember attack!" Hilda suggested.

The orb at the end of Tepig's tail glows orange. "Teeeee-PIIIIIIG!" He releases a large, spiraling stream of red-orange embers from his nose at the Chinchilla Pokémon, but like before, it dodges.

Hilda grits her teeth in frustration.

As Tepig prepares to charge, Minccino closes its ears and opens its mouth letting out a loud it shouts, the inside of its mouth glows white and a beam of wind with turquoise rings inside them come out from Minccino's mouth. It shoots straight at Tepig.

"That's Hyper Voice!" Brock says.

"Looks like Tepig can't move!" Ash added.

Ash was right. Tepig seems frozen in shock of the noise. Minccino jumps forward and lands on top of Tepig. It brushes its tail onto Tepig, making him burst into giggles.

"Tepig! No!" Hilda cries.

Iris blinks. "There goes Tickle."

Minccino continues to use Tickle on Teping, giggling along with him. Then the Chinchilla Pokémon's tail glows with a white light, and slaps Tepig's twice in the face.

"Tepig!" Hilda cries.

"It used Tickle and followed it with Double Slap." Iris says.

"That's some battling style," an equally impressed Brock said. "As cute as Minccino is, it's obviously not to be reckoned with."

Tepig is now struggling to stay on his feet, sweat dripping down its head.

_'Tepig's getting worn out. We've gotta end this.' _Hilda said in her thoughts.

"Min-min-chi." The Minccino chuckles smugly, knowing it had the upper hand. It once again lets loose an earsplitting Hyper Voice at Tepig, causing the Fire-Type to once again struggle.

"I know you can do it, Tepig!" Hilda encouraged her Pokémon. "So that Minccino just how tough you are."

Tepig gritted his teeth as he began struggling to get through the soundwaves and towards Minccino. Sending more soundwaves at Tepig, but the Fire Pig Pokémon refused to give in, its determination giving it the strength to reach Minccino step by step.

"NOW!" Hilda practically bellowed.

A glint appeared in Tepig's eyes and his body becomes engulfed in a burst of red-and-orange flames. The Unova Fire Starter charged towards Minccino, slamming into the Normal-type

"Whoa," Hilda breathed at the move her partner Pokémon just performed.

"What kind of move was that?" asked an equally stunned Ash.

"That was Flame Charge." Brock answered. "Tepig must've been inspired by Hilda's encouraging words and learned a move. And judging by Minccino's condition, it must've been really effective." He added, noticing Minccino wincing in pain as it slowly recovered from the attack Tepig dealt on it.

Hilda smiled, "Wow, Tepig! That's so cool you learned a new move!" she said.

"Tepig!" the Fire Pig Pokémon blushed at his trainer's praise.

"Min-min…" Minccino cringed, still trying to recover.

"Alright, time to catch Minccino." Hilda said, pulling out a vacant Pokéball. "Pokéball, let's go!" she shouted, throwing the Pokéball.

The Pokéball bounces off the Chinchilla Pokémon's head, it opens, and its body becomes converted into red energy. The red energy gets sucked into the Pokéball before it closes. The Pokéball falls to the ground and rocks back and forth, struggling to contain Minccino. Suddenly, the ball opened up again releasing a bright flash of light, and an angry looking Minccino emerges.

Hilda grits her teeth in frustration, _'Damn it! It wasn't enough!' _she said in her thoughts.

"Min-Cinno!" with a vengeful look, Minccino entire tail glows gold and it waves it, firing multiple gold-colored stars from its tail at Tepig.

"Heads up, Minccino's using Swift!" Ash warned Hilda.

"Dodge it, Tepig!" Hilda instructed the Fire Pig Pokémon.

"Pig!" Tepig narrowly avoided the golden-stars.

Refusing to give in, Minccino lunged at Tepig with a glowing white tail.

"Dodge it Tepig!" Hilda ordered. "Then use Tackle!"

As soon as she said that, Tepig became an orange-and-brown blur and avoided Minccino's attack with ease. Minccino only had time to blink before Tepig reappeared behind it suddenly and rammed his body into the Normal-type, sending it skidding forward. Minccino turned around and launched another Hyper Voice at the Fire-type.

"Dodge it!" Hilda ordered again.

Tepig becomes a blur again, easily moving out of the Hyper Voice attack's path.

"How is Tepig moving so fast all of a sudden?" Iris asked.

"That's the additional effect of Flame Charge," Brock explained. "It increases the user's speed with each execution."

Ash smiled, "Awesome, now Tepig will be able to keep up with Minccino!"

"Pikachu!"

"Use Ember again, Tepig!" Hilda ordered eagerly.

The orb at the end of Tepig's tail glows orange. "Teeeee-PIIIIIIG!" He releases a large, spiraling stream of red-orange embers from his nose. Minccino was forced to cover its face to prevent any of the sparks from getting in its eyes, but it still stung from burning some of its fur.

"Now finish it with Flame Charge!" Hilda declared with full confidence.

"Te-Te-Te-Te," Tepig grunts as he repeatedly stomps on the ground until a cloud of dust covers its body. "Te-PIIIIIIIIIG!" Then, Tepig emerges from the cloud, covered in raging flames, and crashes into the Minccino.

"CINOOOOOOOOO!" the Normal-type cried as it was sent hurtling through the air before crashing into a nearby tree. Slumping to the ground, Minccino laid there motionless.

"Okay, this time for sure. Pokéball, let's go!" Hilda shouted, throwing another red-and-white sphere.

Once again, the Pokéball bounces off Minccino, it opens, and Minccino's body becomes converted into red energy. The red energy gets sucked into the Pokéball before it closes. The Pokéball fell to the ground and began rocking back and forth, the button blinking red light as it did so. Everyone else watched in anticipation, awaiting the results. After a few more rocks, the Pokéball stopped wiggling; a _'ding!' _was heard and sparks flew from the button.

A now smiling Hilda walked over to the Pokéball and picked it up. "Alright! I caught, a Minccino!" she declared, holding the Pokéball which contained the Chinchilla Pokémon inside.

"Te-Tepig!" Tepig cheered, popping up next to Hilda, sharing her joy.

Ash, Brock and Iris approached the two.

"Way to go, Hilda!" Ash praised his friend.

"PikaPika!"

"Yeah, not bad for your first Pokémon catch." Iris added.

"I know for certain you and Minccino will get along greatly." Brock puts in his two cents.

"Thanks guys." Hilda replied. "My first captured Pokémon, and it felt awesome!"

* * *

Later that night, the group decided to camp out. Brock even invited Iris to join them, which she happily accepted. It was dinner time; so after setting up chairs and a table, Brock prepared a meal.

"Kay gang, dinner is served!" Brock announced like a butler. He even had a white towel over his right arm, while holding a tray of beverages in his other arm.

"Wow Brock, everything looks delicious!" Hilda said, her mouth practically watering at what Brock prepared: A vegetable and meat stew **(At least I think they eat meat in the Pokémon world.) **as well as salad and garlic bread on the side.

"I don't think I've ever seen food _this _fancy." Iris added.

"And the taste is even better than the smell." Ash said with a knowing smile.

Pikachu, Axew and Tepig whined to Brock hungrily. "Looks like we've got some hungry customers here." The doctor chuckled. "Not to worry, I made more than enough for everyone." he said before walking iver jogged over to a white tarp and uncovered what was beneath it: Bluish-green bowls of brown kibble like food. "Ta da! My extra special Pokémon food!" Brock exclaimed proudly.

"Pika!/ Tepig!/ Ax-ewew!" the three Pokémon cheered happily.

"Hey Hilda, aren't you gonna let your new Minccino eat too?" Ash asked.

"Right, I almost forgot." Hilda said sheepishly before pulling out the Pokéball containing the Chinchilla Pokémon. "Minccino, come on out!" she tossed the Pokéball into the air and Minccino materialized and a bright flash of blusih-white light.

"Min-ccino!" the Normal-type said.

Hilda knelt down next to Minccino, giving it a friendly smile. "Good to see you again, Minccino." She said him. "My name's Hilda. You and I are gonna be good friends." She then gestures towards Tepig. "And this is Tepig. He's also one of your new friends."

"Te-pig-Tepig!" (Hi, Minccino!) the Fire-type said happily.

Minccino frowned before folding his arms and looking away. "Mincci." (Whatever.) he said bitterly.

"Minccino seems kinda distant, doesn't he?" Iris remarked.

"Guess he's a little sour from being beaten by Tepig earlier today." Iris guessed.

Brock chuckled. "Well nothing fixes a Pokémon's grumpy mood better than food." He said holding a bowl of Pokémon kibble. He places it in front of Minccino. "Here you go, Minccino. I made this one special for Normal-types like you."

Minccino looks at the food, sniffs it before taking some in one paw and tastes it. His eyes sparkle and a faint blush forms on his cheeks, before he eagerly starts eating the food as if his life depended on it.

"See, what'd I tell you guys?"

Soon enough, Pikachu, Tepig and Axew also started eating, and so did the trainers. The rest of the night was uneventful as the group chatted to get to know each other a bit. Other than that, nothing. When bed time came, Ash and Brock decided to share a tent. Hilda offered Iris to share with her, but the latter politely declined, saying she prefers to sleep outside. However, when morning came and everyone woke up, they found that Iris and Axew were gone. Brock figured that she probably left already. Shrugging it off, the group packed up camp and were on the move once again.

"Iris left early, you know?" Ash said. "I wonder where she could've gone."

"Pikapika," Pikachu agrees.

"I'm sure she has her own plans as a trainer and wanted to get back on the road early." Brock suggested.

"Well, no big deal." Hilda shrugged "It's a brand new day!"

The group then hear a cooing noise and they look up. A small gray bird is flying in the sky. It has golden, oval eyes and a tuft of feathers atop its rounded head. It has a short, black beak with a bulbous pink cere, and a black patch on the nape of its neck. There is a wide, heart-shaped area of lighter coloration on its chest. Its black wings have a thick gray stripe down the side. It has pink feet with black talons.

"Check it out, you two." Brock said. "It's a Pidove."

Ash recognized it as one of the few Pokémon he saw when he arrived to Unova. He took out his black Pokédex to find out more about Pidove.

**_"Pidove, the Tiny Pidgeon Pokémon. A Pidove flock's cooing can get extremely noisy. Pidove is attracted to shiny objects."_**

"Pidove's are Flying-types." Brock told Ash. "An Electric-type like Pikachu will have a definite advantage."

Ash smiles at Brock's words."You read my mind, Brock." He said before looking at the Mouse Pokémon. "Pikachu, Let's go!"

"Pika!" (Right!) he nodded before he and Ash follow the Pidove; Brock and Hilda right behind them. Soon, the group find a whole flock of the Normal/Flying-type.

"Kay. Let's battle that one!" Ash said, pointing at a nearby Pidove. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt, now!"

"Pikaaaa," Pikachu gathers electricity in his cheek pouches "CHUUUUUUU!" he fires a bolt of electricity in the form of a narrow beam and shocks the Pidgeon Pokémon, resulting in it cooing and fainting. I take out a Poké Ball. "Alright! Now, go Poké Ball—ah!"

The whole flock of Pidove turns on us and attacks the group, sending waves air at them. They try to score a hit on them, but they barely and frantically dodge them. Soon enough, they fly away, leaving our heroes alone, panting.

"Pikachu, you okay?" Ash asks his partner.

"Pikachu." he answers.

"Geez, are all cute Pokémon so hostile?" Hilda asked rhetorically.

Ash shrugs and looks at the Pokéball in his hand. "Guess it's never easy, is it? But no way am I giving up!"

"Look Ash, another Pidove." Brock said. Ash looks up to see a single Pidove, who doesn't seem to notice them.

"One more! Let's get it this time! Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

"Pika-chuuuuuu-PIPIPI!," Pikachu's body is outlined in white and he runs at high speed towards the Pidove, a silver-and-white trail following behind him. His body slams into the Tiny Pidgeon Pokémon.

"Alright!" Ash yells confidently. "Now, Iron Tail!" he continued.

"Pika-chuuuuu," Pikachu gathers energy into his tail, turning it into iron, "Pika!" he slams his steel-coated tail into the Pidove, making it cry out in pain.

"Okay! Nows the time!" Taking his Pokéball, Ash throws it at Pidove. The Pidove's body is turned into red energy and is sucked into the ball, and it shuts. It shakes once, twice, three times and bursts open, the now angry Pidove rematerialized into the air. "Oh, man! And I almost had it, too!"

Suddenly, the Pidove wings glow light blue and it flaps them repeatedly, sending waves of air towards Pikachu.

"Pidove's retaliating with Gust!" Brock noted.

"Come on Ash, you and Pikachu can do it!" Hilda encouraged.

Suddenly, the Pidove flies straight at Pikachu, a white-and-silver trail following behind it, before smashing into the Electric-type.

"It attacks with Gust and follows up with Quick Attack," Brock noted, impressed with the Pidove's battle style. "I'd say Pidove has had its fair share of battles."

Pidove crosses its wings in front of its body and opens them up quickly, releasing multiple light blue 'X' shaped energy blades from its wings at Pikachu.

"That was Air Cutter!" Ash realized before yelling. "Dodge, Pikachu!"

Pikachu swiftly evades the air blades.

"Alright! Thunderbolt, now!"

"Pika-CHUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu once again unleashed a strong bolt of yellow lightning at Pidove, causing critical damage this time.

"This is it! Let's go, Pokéball!" Ash yelled throwing another vacant Pokéball. It bounces off the Tiny Pidgeon Pokémon and it disappears into it in a red flash of light. It falls to the ground, shaking numerous times with the button blinking. Everyone, especially Ash, keeps their eyes on it; Ash didn't want to lose sight of it if it escapes. Suddenly, the ball clicks shut and sparks fly from the button, indicating Pidove was caught.

Everyone gasps, realizing what just happened. Trying to contain his excitement, Ash smiles and walks over to the Pokéball. "Yes!" he picks it up and does a pose. "My first Unova region Pokémon! I caught a Pidove!"

"Pi! Pikachu!" Pikachu cheered popping up next to Ash.

Unable to control himself, Ash picks Pikachu up and spins around with him. "We did it! We did it!" he cheer. Pikachu coos as he hug him tightly.

Hilda and Brock couldn't help but smile at Ash's excitement.

"Wow," a voice behind them says.

Everyone turns to see Iris and Axew.

"It's Iris." Brock said.

"Oh joy," Hilda muttered sarcastically.

"Hey Iris, where've you been?" Brock asked.

"Well Axew and I were gathering some breakfast." Iris explained. "Until we heard a commotion going on here." She then turns to Ash. "You're that excited over catching a little Pidove?" Ash hid a glare from her. "What a kid!" she remarked.

Ash puts Pikachu down. "Of course I'm excited! I've got a new friend! It's also my first Unova region Pokémon."

Iris shrugs. "Well, on second thought, you and that Pidove might be the perfect match."

Suddenly, two voices cry out in terror. The four trainers turned to see Pikachu and Axew being held by mechanical claws. They also see three familiar figures.

"Ugh! You guys, again?!" Hilda yelled angrily.

"Again, the question, so twerpish indeed," Jessie says.

"The answer to come as we feel the need," James finishes.

_Bringing the blinding white light of evil into the future. _

_Thrusting the hammer of justice down onto the black darkness of the universe. _

_And carving our names in the rock of eternity!_

_The fiery destroyer, Jessie. _

_And with thunderous emotion, I am James. _

_Wisest of the wise: Meowth!_

_Now gather under the name of Team Rocket!_

"Wobbuffet!" Wobbuffet ended with a salute.

"Team Rocket?" Iris asks, obviously clueless. "Who are they?"

"They're a group of criminals who steal people's Pokémon!" Brock answered

Jessie smirks. "Right. Evil deeds like stealing Pokémon are our stock and trade to rule the world! Because that's what we do!"

Iris glares at them. "Axew's not yours, he's mine! Give him back!" she demanded.

"I see," James says, looking at the struggling Axew. "So this is Axew."

"And we claim Axew as part of our takeover of the Unova region!" Meowth adds.

"Wobbu!" the Patient Pokémon added.

"Hold on," Iris says. "You must be a Meowth. What are you doing here? Forget about that! How can you talk?!"

Meowth straightens his whiskers. "Simple. I'm a genius. A Meowth that you only get to hear once in a lifetime."

Pikachu and Axew are dumped into a glass crate made of strong material. They pound on the glass, but it's not breaking. They cry and plead to get out.

"Stop," James says, smirking. "You're wasting energy."

Ash and Hilda step up. "Not if we have anything to say about it!" the latter declared.

"Pidove, I choose you!" Ash yelled.

"Minccino, battle time!" Hilda shouted, also

In a dual flash of light, the Tiny Pidgeon Pokémon and the Chinchilla Pokémon materialized, both ready for battle.

"They're using region Pokémon too!" James realizes.

"You're up, Meowth!" Jessie yells. "Show them not to mess with a Pokémon from Kanto!"

Meowth jumps for Pidove and Minccino, claws glowing white. "Fury Swipes!" he yells.

"Pidove, use Gust!" Ash commanded.

"Pi-dove-dove-dove-dove!" Pidove flaps its glowing blue wings and sends out a gust of strong winds, enough to blow Meowth back.

"Minccino, go in with Double Slap!" Hilda ordered, making a slapping motion with her right hand.

"Min!" Minccino jumps up towards the still airborne Meowth. "Cinno!" he smacks Meowth across the face with his glowing white tail. "Cinno!" he slaps Meowth again, enough to send him hurtling towards Team Rocket and crashing into

"Well, that could've been worse." Jessie mutters. "Try my Pokémon on for size!" the Team Rocket redhead throws a Pokéball and in a burst of light, a blue, spherical Pokémon, resembling a Honduran White Bat appeared in the air. It is covered in shaggy fur and has a large, piggish nose with a heart-shaped nostril. Two tufts of shaggy fur hid its eyes, and its mouth has a single fang in the center of its upper jaw. There are two relatively small, black wings on either side of its body.

"Woo-bat!" the Pokémon cried out.

Ash and Hilda gasp. "What's that?!" they asked simultaneously.

"It's a Woobat!" Iris answered. Neither Ash nor Hilda bothered looking it up in their Pokédexes though. Pikachu and Axew needed their help now!

"A Woobat. That name's got a nice ring to it!" Meowth comments.

Jessie snorts. "Nice ring's a good thing. Woobat, use Air Slash!"

Woobat's wings glow light blue and it crosses them in front of its body. It then opens them up quickly, releasing multiple light blue glowing saw disc-like energy blades from its wings at Pidove and Minccino.

Pidove uses quick aerial maneuvers to avoid the blades of air.

"Pidove, use Quick Attack!" Ash instructed.

With a silver trail behind it, Pidove charged at the Flying/Psychic-type. But Jessie was prepared.

"Dodge and use Gust!" Jessie commands. Woobat avoids Pidove and flaps its wings glowing blue wings, sending the Tiny Pidgeon Pokémon to the ground and knocking it unconscious, and causing Ash to gasp in shock.

Hilda glares at the enemies. "You're gonna pay for that. Minccino, use Swift!" she yelled out.

Minccino's entire tail glows gold and it waves it, firing multiple gold-colored stars from its tail at Team Rocket.

But once again, Jessie anticipated an attack, "Wobbuffet, use Mirror Coat," she said to the blue blob beside her.

Wobbuffet's body became surrounded in a white reflective color as Minccino's attack came at it. The attacks were stopped by a strange force field and then fired back at the Chinchilla Pokémon.

The Normal-type only had time to blink in shock before he was pulverized by his own stars, eventually collapsing to the ground next to Pidove.

"How did Wobbuffet do that?" Iris asked in shock.

"Mirror Coat sends the opponent's attack back at them, and with double the damage." Brock explained.

Ash and Hilda run towards Pidove and Minccino. Both held their respective Pokémon in their arms.

"Pidove! Snap out of it!" Ash pleaded.

"Come on, Minccino, wake up!" Hilda begged.

Jessie holds up her Pokéball and a red beam of light retracts Woobat back into it. "This was a worthwhile catch. Of course, I caught it."

"Our premium mission in Unova is complete! Off we go!" James says. Iris and I turn around to see them escaping into the air with their hot air balloon.

"Nice doing business with you twerps," Jessie sneers.

Ash and Iris rush towards them, after the latter returns his tired Pidove. "I'm coming, Axew!" Iris yells. She jumps and climbs the nearest tree.

Following her, Ash yells, "Pikachu! Axew! We'll save you!"

"Be careful you two!" Brock called out to them.

Ash surprises the others by scurrying up the tree faster than Iris, and when he reaches the top, he jumps up and leaps for the cage holding Pikachu and Axew. His fingertips brush the glass, but he falls back down soon. He crashes through the tree and lands on his back on the cold hard ground.

"ASH!" Hilda cried out instantly and was immediately by his side. Helping him sit up, she asks, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Ugh!" he groans in pain as Iris and Brock join them.

Suddenly, a small green snake-like Pokémon with limbs and a leaf on the end of its tail runs past the trainers. "Sni-Vy!"

Brock's eyes widened (or at least became less squinty). "A Snivy?"

The Grass Snake Pokémon jumps up high in the air and towards the Meowth balloon. The leaf at the end of Snivy's tail becomes surrounded by a wavy light green aura. It then somersaults at the balloon and slashes it with its tail leaving behind a light green trail of energy where it slashes. A large whole is ripped into the balloon, air is released from it, and it descends to the ground. The glass cage breaks, and Iris and I run to catch our Pokémon.

"Pikachu!" Ash catches his partner in his arms, relieved he's safe.

"Axew!" Iris's Dragon-type falls into her arms.

They see Jessie, James and Meowth glaring at us. "You don't do that to us!" Jessie shouts at us.

Clenching his hands into fists, Ash glares back. "Pikachu and Axew are our friends! You're not taking them!"

"Yeah!" Hilda agreed. "You don't have the right to take what doesn't belong to you!"

"Right!" Iris chirps in. "Listen to Hilda and Ash, 'cause they're telling the truth!"

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash immediately ordered.

"Pika…" Pikachu prepares to unleash a Thunderbolt.

Jessie quickly throws her Pokéball. "Woobat, go!" the blue Bat Pokémon rematerialized in the air in a burst of light. "Use Air Slash!"

"Wooooo-Bat!" it waves its glowing blue wings, sending out multiple light blue glowing saw disc-like energy blades at Pikachu, making an explosive impact.

"Pikachu, no!" Ash cried out in concern. While Flying-type moves don't usually do much damage to Electric-types like Pikachu, the Air Slash caused critical damage that left Pikachu barely able to stand.

Jessie sneered triumphantly. "Who else wants a piece?" he dared.

"Time to fight bat Pokémon with bat Pokémon!" Brock said, now holding a Pokéball. "Go, Crobat!" he tosses the red-and-white sphere into the air, and in a bursting flash of light, a medium sized, purple, bat-like Pokémon materialized in front of Woobat, who was startled by its sudden appearance. This bigger bat Pokémon has a stubby pair of feet, and has a second pair of wings with greenish-blue undersides and two stubby 'fingers'. Its pointed ears are long, and appear to lack insides. Its mouth is small and appears to have its teeth bared. The eyes are yellow with red pupils.

"Cro!" the Bat Pokémon hissed.

Ash smiled at the familiar Pokémon. "It's Crobat!"

"Crobat?" Hilda repeated, taking out her Pokédex and scans the purple bat Pokémon.

_**"**__**Crobat, the Bat Pokémon, and the evolved form of Golbat. After evolving, Crobat gains a second set of wings, allowing it to fly more quickly and silently so it can sneak up on prey without its noticing."**_

"Air Slash, again!" Jessie ordered.

But before Woobat could launch its attack,

"Use Supersonic, Crobat!" Brock ordered quickly.

"Crooooooo!" the larger Bat Pokémon released several soundwaves at the smaller Bat Pokémon, causing it to cringe from the ear-splitting pain it was now experiencing from Supersonic. Next thing we know, two yellow stars appear where Woobat's eyes should be, and smaller stars spin around above it.

"Now Woobat's confused!" James noted.

"Now use Cross Poison!" Brock continued.

Crobat crossed its wings, all four of which began to glow a deadly purple, forming a large purple "X" in front of its body. It then thrust its wings forward and launched the "X" at Woobat.

"Wobbuffet, Mirror Coat!" Jessie said frantically.

"Wobb!" Wobbuffet jumped in front of Woobat, his body coated in a white surface as it awaited the Cross Poison.

"Sni!" Snivy released a green vine from her collar that wraps around Wobbuffet's tail and moves him out of the way, just in time before Cross Poison made an explosive impact with Woobat. From the cloud of purplish-gray smoke, the little Bat Pokémon fell and light *_thuds_* when it hits the ground, now unconscious.

Ash then yells to his Pikachu. "You can do it, Pikachu! Use Volt Tackle!"

"PikaPikapikapika!" Pikachu runs at Team Rocket. His body then becomes surrounded by golden electricity, giving his body a black and white look. Pikachu tackled into the criminals, creating a powerful explosion and sends them packing.

"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" the criminals cried out as they disappeared into the sky.

"We did it!" Hilda cheered.

"Well done, Crobat." Brock praised the Bat Pokémon before returning him to his Pokéball.

Suddenly, Pikachu and Axew collapse onto the ground. Ash gasped. "Pikachu!"

"Axew!" Iris takes the Tusk Pokémon into her arms and Ash does the same with Pikachu.

"Pikachu, stay strong!" he pleaded.

"They must be tired from the battle." Hilda figured.

"Let's get them to the Pokémon Center. It's not too far from here" Brock suggests.

"Right." Ash, Hilda and Iris nodded before they all ran off to get their Pokémon medically aided.

"Thanks, Snivy!" Brock called out to the Grass Snake Pokémon.

"Sni?" said Snivy as it watched the trainers depart.

* * *

Later as the sun was setting; at the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy smiles at our heroes. "Thank you for waiting. I'm happy to say your Pokémon are feeling just fine."

Pikachu, Pidove, Minccino and Axew happily cheered, now fully healed from their battle injuries.

Axew jumps into Iris's arms, Minccino does the same with Hilda, Pikachu in Ash's and Pidove flies just near his head.

"Oh, I'm so relieved!" Iris says.

"Yeah, we were all pretty worried back there." Hilda added.

"That's great, Nurse Joy," Ash tells her. "Thank you."

Nurse Joy's eyes fall on Pikachu. "Hey! Seeing a Pikachu? That's very unusual."

"Guess so," Ash admitted with a smile. "See, we're from Pallet Town. This is the first Pokémon Center we've seen since coming to the Unova region."

Nurse Joy smiles again. "Then welcome! And just like Kanto, if your Pokémon ever need help, or you need anything at all, feel free to stop by anytime!"

"Thank you." Ash said again. Pidove lands on his hand, puffing out its chest proudly, earning a good laugh from everyone.

Suddenly, Brock popped right in front of the Nurse. He grabbed Joy's hands and held them mid-torso up."_Nurse Joy! I am really thankful that you took good care of my friend's Pokémon. And now will you do me the honor of going out on a romantic date near the— ACK!__"_ Before Brock could finish his advancement toward Nurse Joy, Brock's Croagunk, the Toxic Mouth Pokémon that does things in his own pace, had Poison Jabbed his rear-end. The poisonous purple color faded from Croagunk's fingertips.

"_HHHooOOWW'sss aABBOOuutT wE JUst BE Pen paLS?!"_ Brock croaked out before collapsing from the Poison Jab.

"Croaoaoaoaoa…" Croagunk dragged his master away. "Croa… Croa… Croa…"

Everyone else sweatdrops at what just occurred.

"Does that happen a lot?" Hilda asked Ash.

"You have no idea." Ash replied with a chuckle.

Iris then speaks up. "Ash? Hilda? I have to say, you two aren't too bad."

They turn to her. "Huh?"

"You're still kids, but I am impressed." she admits, winking.

Ash and Hilda weren't sure what she's impressed at them for. Saving Axew? Catching a Pokémon? Stopping Team Rocket?

"Thank you. You guys saved Axew."

"Ax! Axew!" the Tusk Pokémon agreed.

"Hm." Ash and Hilda smile. "Well, we should both thank Snivy. Right, buddy?" the latter asked Pikachu.

"Pika!" he chirped.

Hilda stares out the window and into the sunset. "I still can't figure out why Snivy helped us like that..."

**End of chapter.**

**And so Iris is now a part of the group. I know, I know I said that she wasn't gonna be in the first chapter, but then I figured it would be a good idea to have a second girl in the group. As annoying as Iris can occasionally be, she's still a good friend to have around, and she and Hilda can have girl talk when they need to. And I replaced Oshawott with Snivy in this chapter.**

**SPOILER ALERT: Some of the chapters in this story will be similar to the canon episodes of the Best Wishes series, but with my own twists. But rest assured, there will be some originals as well. After the next chapter, I'll write my first original chapter as a forth, and the Oshawott that'll appear later will be different from the one Ash got from Professor Juniper.**

**Next Time: **_**"A Sandile Gusher!"**_

**Please review and feel free to leave any suggestions if you have any.**


	3. A Sandile Gusher!

_**Chapter 3: A Sandile Gusher!**_

We join Ash, Pikachu, Hilda, Iris and Brock as they walk along a path; Iris and Hilda are in front while Ash and Brock are behind.

_**NARRATOR: Continuing his quest for Unova region Pokémon, and his journey to become a Pokémon master, Ash, accompanied by Hilda, Brock and new friend Iris, continue their course for Accumula Town, where our Pallet Town hero will register for the Unova League.**_

As they walked, Hilda puts her mind to other things like how she's going through phases. With her age being 14, she feels weird not having her first relationship yet. She hasn't even been kissed yet, and she feels embarrassed about it. She doubted she'd find someone who'll like her in Unova, since no one did growing up. Crazily, she wondered if Ash likes her, but dismissed the thought. As if someone who's been a trainer since he was 10 years old would be interested in a 14 year old rookie trainer like her.

Trying to ease the silence, Hilda spoke to Iris and tries to start a conversation. "So, why are you coming along with us anyway?" she asked the purplette.

"Excuse me, but it's not that _I'm_ coming with _you guys_," Iris replied, before starting to walk ahead of Hilda. "It's that _you guys __are_coming along with _me_, get it?"

"Oh, please." Hilda responded dismissively, before walking faster to try and get ahead of Iris.

"It's true!" Iris exclaimed as Axew came out of her hair to see what was up.

"Ax-ew!"

"Sheesh," Hilda exclaimed as he and Iris were trying to out-speed each other.

"Excuse me!" Iris exclaimed as she passed Hilda again.

"Excuse me!" Hilda shot back as she passed Iris again.

Iris then got determined and growled a little before attempting to go past Hilda.

"No, you don't!" Hilda said, also attempting to go past Iris.

Iris then had enough, growled once more, and picked up the speed. Hilda then followed suit as the two were then growling and trying to out-speed each other.

Ash, Pikachu and Brock sweat-dropped at the girls' competitiveness.

"Why do I have a feeling this is gonna happen a lot between those two?" Ash asked. "Think we should do something?" he asked Brock.

"Ash, one of the most important things to remember about girls: Never get in the middle of a fight between them." Brock informed the Pallet Town trainer in a wise manner. "Believe me, it's not worth the trouble."

Finally, Iris stopped and stood in front of Hilda.

"Who said you could walk in front of me?" Iris demanded.

"No one!" Hilda replied, matching Iris' tone.

"Look, I figured since you guys don't know the Unova region, I'd help you out!" Iris explained, before crossing her arms and looking away. "But what do I get for trying to be a little bit nice? Obviously not even a "thank you"!"

Hilda glares at Iris, She was really starting to get on her nerves."I don't remember _you _asking _us _if we _wanted _you to come along with us!" Hilda pointed out.

"Sure." Iris said, before opening her previously closed eyes a slit and looks at Hilda. "Go ahead and act like you're the boss." She then tilted her head back as if to laugh. "You're such a kid!"

"Oh, yeah?" Hilda exclaimed, a bit of anger in his tone. "Well it takes one to know one."

"You've got _some _nerve saying _that_ to me!" Iris retorted, matching Hilda's tone. Sparks fly between the girls' eyes.

"Man, how immature can you get?" Ash asked rhetorically, more to himself than anyone else.

"Uh, isn't this how you and Misy were when you two first met?" Brock asked, causing Ash to look sheepish. He had a point.

"Pikapika." (He has a point.)

Before Hilda and Iris could argue more, the group noticed they were being watched.

"Hey, look." Brock said.

"Snivy!" The Grass Snake Pokémon exclaimed upon its revelation.

"It's Snivy!" Ash exclaimed, recognizing the Pokémon.

"I remember," Iris began, as she recalled what happened the day before. "You're the same Snivy that helped us rescue our Pokémon from Team Rocket!"

"What are the odds we'd run into you again?" Brock asked.

"Let's see what the Pokédex has to say about you." Hilda said as he grabbed her Pokédex from her pocket.

"_**Snivy, the Grass Snake Pokémon. Exposure to sunlight enhances Snivy's swift movements. It is among the most calm and intelligent of Pokémon."**_

"Thanks again for helping us out back there, Snivy." Brock said.

"Sni-vy Sni." ("Not a problem.")

"But I don't understand what you're doing here now." Ash said to the Grass Snake Pokémon.

"If I didn't know better, I think that Snivy was following us." Iris guessed.

"You think so?" Ash wondered. Then he smiled. "Maybe Snivy wants to be my Pokémon!" he concluded.

"Or maybe it wants to be _my _Pokémon!" Hilda stated.

"Alright then, first one to beat Snivy in battle keeps it!" Ash declared. "Pikachu, you ready?" he asked his partner.

"Pika!" (Ready!) the Electric Mouse Pokémon said before jumping off Ash's shoulder and got ready for battle.

"Tepig, battle time!" Hilda said, throwing a Pokéball and the Fire Pig Pokémon materialized next to Pikachu.

"Tepig!" he snorted.

"Sni," Snivy narrowed her eyes, in a manner that meant it wasn't to be messed with.

Unfazed by the threatening glare, Ash calls an attack for Pikachu. "Okay Pikachu, Quick Attack, let's go!"

"Pika!" the Mouse Pokémon charges at Snivy with full speed; a trail of silver-and-white energy following him, but Snivy sees this and swiftly dodges Pikachu's attack.

Ash gasped. "It dodged!"

"Ash," Brock spoke. "Snivy are really smart and speedy Pokémon. Catching one will not be easy."

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Piiiikaaaa," Pikachu begins gathering electricity, but before he could launch the attack, Snivy winks at the Electric-type and releases several pink hearts that surround him. "Pika?" The hearts then circle around and shrink into Pikachu's body. He suddenly smiles, hearts replace his eyes as he sways back and forth on his back paws.

Ash raised an eyebrow. "Hey, what's up, Pikachu?"

"Pikachu got hit by Snivy's Attract." Iris answers.

Ash and Hilda turn to Iris, tilting their heads. "Huh?"

"Attract is a move that causes infatuation in Pokémon of the opposite gender." Brock explains. "Since Pikachu's male, that must mean Snivy's a female."

Iris crosses her arms in irritation. "Oh, boy. Ash, you and Hilda don't even know that?! What a couple of kids!"

Before Ash or Hilda could retort to Iris' rude remark, two vines snake out of Snivy's neck and lashes for Pikachu. They smack him, causing him to cry out in pure pain, and sends him flying into Ash's arms.

"Pikachu, no!" Ash said worriedly.

"I guess it's my turn to have a go." Hilda said. "Tepig, use Ember!"

"Piiiiiig!" Tepig released fiery sparks from his snout at Snivy, but the Grass-type elegantly dodges them. She blinks and once again sends hearts towards Tepig, making him fall in love with her as well.

"Ah Tepig, not you too!" Hilda said with a face-palm before returning him to his Pokéball.

Snivy ignored Ash and Hilda, and walked up to Brock, much to his confusion.

"Sni vy vy snivy sni." (It's good to see you again, Brock.) the Grass-type said to the doctor in training with a warmer smile.

Brock took a closer look at Snivy. He couldn't help but...recognize her, as if he knew her from somewhere. "Wait a minute..." he said, realization dawning on him. "You're the Snivy from Professor Juniper's lab, aren't you?" he asked.

The Snivy smirked, "Snivy." (That's right.) she nodded.

"You know this Snivy, Brock?" Hilda asked.

"Yeah." Brock nodded. "I knew this Snivy since I started working as Professor Juniper's lab assistant."

_**(Flashback: The bold-italics is Brock's voice-over)**_

_In Juniper's lab, she and Brock are standing near a stretcher, and lying on the stretcher with a blanket over her and a wet towel on her head is Snivy. The Grass Snake Pokémon looked ill._

"_**Snivy came down with a serious illness that left her drained and weak. You can imagine how worried Professor Juniper got."**_

_Brock then proceeds in making Snivy's medicine: Putting a few revival herbs in a bowl and grinds them with a stone until it was powdery. Next he mixes it with Oran Berry juice. Once all that was finished, Brock spoon fed the medicine to the sick Grass-type._

"_**Fortunately, being an experienced breeder and doctor in training, I was able to whip up an effective healing medicine, and soon enough, Snivy was back on her feet good as new."**_

_The now healthy Snivy was affectionately rubbing Brock's cheeks with her vines, showing her gratitude, and earning a laugh from the squinty-eyed human._

_**(Flashback)**_

"If I had to guess," Iris spoke. "I think Snivy came to thank you, Brock."

"Yeah," Hilda agreed. "Snivy may be attached to you." She added.

"Is that true, Snivy?" Brock asked the Grass-type, who nodded in reply. This earned a warm smile from the breeder. "Well if you wanted to come with me this whole time, all you had to do was ask.

"Well, the only thing we can do now is go get Snivy's Pokéball." Ash said. "Come on, let's go!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

* * *

Minutes later, the group made it to the nearest Pokémon Centre and found a videophone to contact Professor juniper.

"So _that's_ where Snivy went!" the Unovan Professor exclaimed. "I was so worried, since Snivy left without letting me know."

"Yeah, looks like Snivy's been following us from the beginning." Ash replied.

"I'm sort of surprised we hadn't realized it until now." Hilda added.

"Well Brock, if it wouldn't be too much of a bother," Professor Juniper said to the breeder. "Maybe _you_ could take care of Snivy from now on.

"Of course it wouldn't, Professor. Snivy is more than welcome to come with me if that's what she wants." Brock responded, but then he realized something else. "You mean you actually don't mind?"

"No, of course not!" Professor Juniper replied. "I'll send you its Poké Ball right away."

True to her word, the Pokéball belonging to Snivy appeared on the transporter next to the videophone in a bright light.

"Thanks, Professor. I've got it." Brock said as he got the Poké Ball and held it for affirmation.

"And Brock, since Snivy has a tendency to disappear," Professor Juniper started, a slight sweat-drop on her head. "keep an eye out." Professor Juniper then put her hand to her hand in a salute-esque manner. "Thanks, see you soon!"

The videophone picture then distorted before fading to black, signalling the end of the call. That left the four teens to be puzzled as they then turned around and noticed that Snivy was gone.

"Snivy's gone." Ash said.

"Pika."

"Where'd she go?" Hilda asked.

They then soon walked out of where they were and started looking for Snivy.

"Well, I guess _I'll _just have to help _you_ guys look around." Iris said, her hand on her hip and her head up as if she were about to scoff.

"Uh, I'm sure we've got this under control, Iris." Brock informed her.

"Don't worry, Brock. We'll find Snivy in no time. "Let's go, Pikachu!"

"Pikachu!" (Right behind you!)

"I'm coming too!" Hilda said, following Ash.

"Hey, wait a minute you two!" Iris exclaimed when she noticed Ash was running. "Stop acting like a bunch of kids who gotta rush all the time!"

"Whoa!" Ash, Hilda, Iris and Brock exclaimed as the four trainers, plus Pikachu, fell down a pit that seemingly came out of nowhere.

"Well that smarts..." Hilda groaned.

"That hurts!" Ash groaned as well. '_I'd assume Team Rocket did this, but they haven't dug a pit trap like this is a long time.'_

"What's going on?" Iris wondered aloud.

"Is everybody alright?" Brock asked the three other trainers.

"Looks like a trap." Brock replied.

"Ax-ew!" Axew then came from Iris' hair to see what was going on.

"If it is, who could've done this?" Ash asked.

"Pika."

He was answered by a voice above them. "Sandile."

The four trapped teens then looked up to see a brown-haired boy with a friendly smile wearing a light green shirt with an orange button on it looking down at them.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a road not unlike the one they were on, a certain trio were rushing somewhere. Likely to where our heroes are.

"Hurry up!" Jessie demanded. "We've got to capture Pikachu and report to the Boss ASAP!"

"We may have fallen short last time, but this time for sure!" James interjected, who was holding a brief case.

"Success is as sure as the day is long!" Meowth added.

The trio was then caught off-guard as they landed onto a pitfall trap but quickly recovered and landed on their feet.

"Looks like someone else has been busy digging pit traps." Jessie commented, remembering how they had dug pit traps multiple times over the years in an attempt to capture Pikachu.

"But the question is who?" James wondered aloud.

Their attention was diverted however when they heard saw a short, quadruped Pokémon glaring at them. It had a long snout and tail. Its body is mostly light brown with the exception of black stripes crossing over and under its legs and its pink underbelly. It has a black stripe on its snout in front of its eyes, and black covering the tip of its tail. Its eyes resemble binoculars and are shrouded in black all around their front. The black is a membrane, its long snout is tipped by two protruding nostrils, and its mouth comprises the bottom half. Its feet are flat and contain three sharp, black claws, which are attached to stubby legs on its sides. Another odd trait about this Pokémon was that it was...wearing sunglasses.

"Sandile! Sandile!" the crocodile-like Pokémon said, glaring at Team Rocket.

"What have we here?" Jessie inquired.

"It's an unfamiliar Pokémon." James added.

"Sand." It said again.

* * *

After the boy helped the group out of the pitfall trap, he told them of how it was a Sandile that dug it up in the first place.

"Sandile?" Ash wondered aloud as he took out his Pokédex and search for the Pokémon in question. He found it and images of its different angles appeared on the screen.

_**"Sandile, the Desert Croc Pokémon. A dark membrane protects its eyes from the sun and it buries itself in the sand with its eyes and nose sticking out."**_

"Wow." Ash responded simply, putting the Pokédex away.

"I'm Iris and I can't thank you enough for helping us." The purple-haired female said. "And these are Ash, Brock and Hilda."

"Hi, my name's Dan and my family and I operate a resort spa and hotel that's not far from here." The boy now identified as Dan explained.

"That is so cool, because I happen to _adore_ resort spas!" Iris exclaimed happily, taking Dan's hands for a moment.

"That makes two of us!" Hilda added.

"Yeah, me three!" Ash chimed in.

"Well, it makes me really happy to hear that, but," Dan began as he then put his hand behind his head. "It makes me really sad to say we're closed right now, because of Sandile." He then removed his hand when he finished saying now.

A slight gasp from the group was their response.

"Our hot sand spa is our hotel's biggest attraction." Dan continued back at the hot sand spa area. "Unfortunately, now it looks like _this.__" He said, gesturing to the empty and almost utterly damaged spa._

"Whoa, that's too bad!" Ash commented, noticing the broken off trees, the tape around the area, and the holes of filled sand in front of him.

"Yeah, what could've caused all this?" Brock asked Dan.

"Well, it just happened a short time ago." Dan answered; recounting the day the Sandile came. "When a couple came in to relax, the wild Sandile appeared and soon afterwards, they started to rumble in the ground, causing the couple to shriek and run away."

The four teens merely listened on to every word.

"So for now, I'm afraid we're just going to have to stay closed." Dan said when he finished his tale.

"I don't understand how a bunch of friendly Sandile could have suddenly gotten destructive." Iris said, her hands out to her sides palm up in puzzlement.

"Yeah, we don't have any idea either." Dan admitted.

"Well, we can't just _stand here_, why don't we help him find out what's wrong?" Ash said, fists clenched in determination.

"Pika." ("Let's go")

"Come on!" Ash exclaimed, as he was suddenly in his trunks and has his whole body, with the exception of his head, completely covered in sand, and Pikachu does the same. The others were left to gasp as they saw what they were doing.

"Man..." Ash said as he was enjoying the sensation of the hot sand on his body. "It doesn't get any better than this."

"Pika, Pikachu." Pikachu said in agreement.

"Okay, I give," Iris said as she and Dan walked over to them. "_What _do you think you're doing?"

"Well, before we figure it out, we need research first," Ash replied. "And who knows? Maybe the Sandile will want to disrupt our hot sand enjoyment and come here."

"In a way, that does sort of make sense when you think about it." Brock said, at first a little unsure himself.

Iris however, wasn't buying it as she put her hands on her hips. "All _you _care about is checking out the hot sand."

Iris then had an unamused expression when Axew came up next to Pikachu, also enjoying the hot sand. "Ax-ew." The Tusk Pokémon said.

"Not you too?" She said, a bit exasperated.

Ash then let out a sigh of contentment. "This is the best!"

The two Pokémon agreed with their own sighs of contentment.

* * *

While they were in the hot sand, three familiar faces were watching them through their goggles.

"It appears that the twerp is having the time of his life." James sarcastically remarked.

"Which gives us the perfect chance." Jessie interjected.

Their attention was again diverted though when they heard a familiar noise behind them.

"Sandile!" the Desert Croc Pokémon said upon seeing Team Rocket. It obviously wasn't too pleased about seeing them again. And neither were they.

"Oh, not you again!" Jessie exclaimed.

"Why must you be so persistent?" James asked, also annoyed.

"Stay here and you'll blow our cover!" Meowth interjected.

"Sandile!" the Ground/Dark-type said, seeing that as a good idea.

"I think it's time for you to become scarce." Meowth said.

"Sandile. Sandile!" The Sandile then burrowed underground as Jessie and Meowth shielded themselves from the dirt that rose up.

* * *

"Uh, in case you forgot Ash," Brock said. "Aren't we supposed to be looking for Snivy?"

That caught Ash's attention. "Sorry, I was distracted trying to be of help." he said as he got up.

"Pika, Pika!" ("I think you just forgot.")

Then they heard a familiar sound not too far away.

"Sni..." the Grass Snake gave a tranquil sigh, enjoying the sensation of the hot sand on her body. That brought sweat-drops to Ash, Pikachu, Hilda and Brock.

"Hold on, have you been lying _here_ this whole time?" Ash asked as he and the others ran over to her.

"Snivy Snisnivy vy" (Perhaps, but I find this hot sand is lovely.) the Grass-type replied nonchalantly.

"Well, that's one happy Grass-type, that's for sure." Brock commented, a small sweat-drop appearing.

"Sandile!" Their attention was soon focused on something else as a Sandile wearing sunglasses suddenly came bursting through the hot sand.

"You see!" Dan exclaimed, pointing an accusatory finger at the Sandile. "That's the leader of the Sandile."

"Sand!" The Sandile then charged forward and bit down on Axew, surprising Snivy and making her come out of the sand.

"No, Axew!" Iris exclaimed worriedly.

"Wel'll save you!" Ash said. "Don't worry!"

"Pikachu!"

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt let's go!" Ash commanded.

"Pikaaaaa..." Pikachu starts gathering electrical power.

"Alice!" Iris shouts at him. "If you use Thunderbolt, then Axew will get hurt!"

"Huh?" Ash then remembered the type disadvantages and everything. Sandile looked like a Ground-type, and Electric-type moves like Thunderbolt will only hurt Axew, since it'll have no effect on Sandile. Iris runs to the Sandile, kneels down and starts pulling on it, trying to pry her Axew away from it.

"Now you let go of my Axew or else!" Iris demanded.

"Sand!" the Sandile refuses.

Then Ash, Pikachu, and Snivy came running over and helped.

"Open your mouth!" Ash demanded. "Come on!"

"Let's try to pull hard all at once!" Iris said determinedly.

After pulling hard twice, but Sandile's jaws proved to be surprisingly strong, and for such a little Pokémon. Finally having enough, Snivy's leaf-tail glowed light green before she slams it into Sandile's face, catching it by surprise and forcing it to release the Tuck Pokémon. While Axew was free, this only made the Ground-type angrier. They were then blown back as Sandile then grabbed onto Pikachu's arm and Snivy's tail before it started running on its stubby legs.

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed for his Electric-type.

"Snivy!" Brock called out to the Grass-type.

As the Sandile continues running away with Pikachu and Snivy, it is suddenly lifted off the ground by some kind of machine in a truck. The group gasped and looked at the drivers, recognizing them as Team Rocket.

"Team Rocket!" Hilda exclaimed. "What's all that?"

"Open your ears for the answers indeed!"

"The answer to come...as we feel the need!"

"We bring...white light of evil into your future!"

"Hammering...justice onto the black universe!"

"Carving our names in the rock of eternity!"

"The fiery destroyer...Jessie!"

"With thunderous emotion...I am James!"

"Wisest of the wise, Meowth!"

"Now, gather under the name of Team Rocket!"

"Wobbuffet!"

"Don't you ever give up?!" Iris exclaimed, her one fist raised in anger and irritation.

"Give us back our Pokémon!" Ash demanded.

"There's a huge flaw in your premise since they're now _our _Pokémon." Jessie responded smugly, her head sticking out of the machine they were driving.

Pikachu and Snivy merely protested their disagreements as they drove off. Before they could get close to the machine though, Meowth threw a smokescreen down, allowing them to escape.

* * *

Once they felt they were a safe distance away, the machine stopped.

"The dream of catching Pikachu comes true!" Jessie exclaimed, looking out the window at her quarry.

"And there's nothing like Snivy and Sandile as a bonus prize!" Meowth added, a smile on his face.

"So, let's inform the Boss right away!" James interjected.

"Wobbu!" the Patient Pokémon said with a salute.

"What's happening?" Jessie exclaimed as the machine they were in suddenly tilted. They were then aware of a group of Sandile looking them down.

"Ash, up there!" Iris exclaimed, pointing in the direction she saw something.

"Team Rocket!" Ash, who was back in his normal clothes, exclaimed, his fist rising in anger.

"If we hurry we can rescue Pikachu and Snivy!" Brock added.

"Right." Hilda, Ash, Iris and Dan said in agreement.

"Sandile! Sandile!" the numerous Desert Croc shouted at Team Rocket, demanding that they let their leader go.

"Stay away from us, all of you!" Meowth exclaimed, swinging the briefcase in his hands back and forth to try and ward off the oncoming Sandile. The Sandile then began to dig when they received a signal from their leader.

"All right, what are they trying to do?" Jessie wondered aloud, a bit perplexed before turning to her human companion. "James, let's get out of here, right away!"

"Right!" James agreed.

Before they could move though, they began to sinking into the ground as they tilted to the side and back and forth.

The Team Rocket Trio managed to jump out of the now grounded vehicle and onto a nearby ledge.

"Team..." James began. "I'm afraid we've no choice but to retreat."

"Right." Jessie agreed.

Meowth merely nodded in agreement.

* * *

As the group of teens went to catch up with their Pokémon, they noticed that there was a group of Deerling, Oddish, Poliwag, Pidove, and Patrat that appeared to be terrified of something. To get a better look, they knelt down behind a rock to remain inconspicuous.

"There they are." Ash stated.

"Yeah, and check out all of those wild Pokémon, too!" Iris added.

"And they all look scared for some reason." Hilda pointed out, noticing the Pokémon's timidity.

"So, what's going on?" Dan wondered aloud.

"Whatever it is, it must be linked to the Sandile's odd behavior." Brock suggested.

They then saw two things happen next; the leader of the Sandile were conversing with them atop a plateau, and a geyser appeared, spooking the wild Pokémon. As the Sandile reassured the wild Pokémon, they started walking with them guiding them as more geysers appeared.

"What's that?" Ash asked as a geyser appeared near them.

"A geyser!" Dan replied simply.

"It's boiling water that shoots up from under the ground." Iris elaborated.

"I've never seen a geyser around here." Dan added.

"You mean this isn't normal?" Hilda asked Dan.

Dan shook his head, "No, not at all."

"Looks like the Sandile with the sunglasses is guiding them all somewhere." Brock stated as her saw the Sandile with sunglasses leading the wild Pokémon.

"If I had to guess, I think Sandile are trying to protect the other wild Pokémon." Brock evaluated before putting his hand to his chin thoughtfully. "When you think about it, that must be the reason they came to the sand bath in the first place, that they were really just trying to warn everyone about the danger from the geysers."

Dan thought about Brock's scenario, "You might be right, Brock. A Pokémon wouldn't act so strangely unless there was a reason behind it."

"Is that why Sandile grabbed Axew?" Iris asked.

"It was trying to save Axew!" Ash said. "That Sandile's all right!" he added.

"Hey, Pikachu!" Ash said after standing up and running to the Electric Mouse Pokémon.

"Pika!" Pikachu sees his trainer and runs to him, Snivy following behind.

"Sand?" the Sandile leader sees Pikachu and Snivy leaving. "Sand! Sandile Sandile! Sand!" it turns around, wanting to get the two Pokémon back.

Suddenly, everyone felt a strange tremor.

"That sounds huge." Dan said.

As more geysers appeared around the area. The wild Pokémon; minus the other Sandile, found themselves trapped on a small island surrounded by a stream of boiling hot water.

"They're surrounded by boiling water!" Iris commented. "Now what do we do?"

"It's gonna be trouble if another big one blows!" Dan added.

"Like right now!" Hilda exclaimed frantically, looking to her right as another loud noise sounded.

"All right!" Ash exclaimed before running over to the stream.

"Pika, Pika!" ("Hey, wait!") Pikachu tried to follow his trainer for in case he needed help, only for a green vine to block his path. He looked to his right to see it belonged to Snivy.

"Pikachu?!" (What are you doing?!) he demanded.

"Vy snivy Sniv Snisnivy sniv." (Don't do it. You'll only get in his way.) Snivy responded calmly.

Pikachu continued to argue. "Pika! Pikapikachu pi-" (You're wrong! Ash needs-)

Whatever Pikachu was going to say next never came, as he was silenced by a sharp glare from the Grass Snake Pokémon. It was enough to send shivers down his spine.

"Snivy snivyvysni snivy vy. Vyvysni snivy vy vy sni." (Your trainer is already worried about the safety of those other Pokémon. He doesn't need to worry about yours too.) Snivy told Pikachu in calm but firm tone. Pikachu could do nothing but sigh in defeat and hoped that his trainer would come out of this disaster okay.

Gritting his teeth, Ash runs towards the water and dips his leg in, but with even his jeans, the water melts right through, leaving a burning feeling on his leg. He yelps and shrinks back to the land, clutching his leg in pain. The others run up to him.

"Ash, you can't wade through that boiling water!" Brock exclaimed. "The temperatures must be at scalding heat!"

"But I've got to do _something _to save them!" Ash exclaimed, looking up and holding his leg.

"Sandile, Sand, Sand!" the Sandile leader said before he told other Sandile to follow its lead as it bit down on a rock and the other Sandile bit on the tail of the Sandile as they ascended.

"What are the Sandile doing?" Hilda asked.

"I know!" Ash exclaimed, fists clenched in realization. "The Sandile are making a bridge!"

"Good luck, Sandile!" Dan shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"You can do it!" Iris added, mimicking the gesture.

"Yeah! Awesome!" Ash exclaimed as the Sandile formed a bridge to the wild Pokémon. "Everyone, cross over the bridge!"

But the wild Pokémon merely stood there, looking unsure and timid.

"What's the matter?" Iris wondered.

"I think they might be scared." Brock answered her.

Hilda's face dropped "Well that's just great." She muttered.

"Hey, you've got to hurry and cross!" Ash shouted, but when it appeared they weren't budging, he figured it was time to act before he ran over to them. "I've gotta help them!"

"Pika!" ("Right!")

"Come on!" Ash said. "Let's all get on the Sandile bridge and cross over together!"

"PikaPika!"

Hesitantly but surely, one of the Deerling began to cross.

"Okay, hurry!" Ash exclaimed as the Pidove flew over **(seriously, why didn't they just do that before?)** and a Patrat started crossing.

"Keep it up!" Iris exclaimed encouragingly.

"Not much time!" Dan added.

"Hurry!" Brock said.

"Pikachu, why don't you go on ahead!" Ash said as the final Pokémon, a Deerling, began to cross.

"Pikachu!" After Pikachu jumped on the bridge though, the ground underneath the Sandile cracked.

Ash gasped before grabbing onto the Sandile to save it.

"Oh no, Ash!" Hilda yelled out in concern.

"Hang in there!" Brock called over.

"Pika, Pi!"

"'Kay, hang on a little longer!" Ash said encouragingly as the Sandile biting the rock began to feel tired from its efforts. "You can do it, Sandile! Just a little bit more!"

Then, as Pikachu and Deerling got off the bridge, a geyser erupted behind Ash.

Thinking quickly, Brock looked down at Snivy. "Snivy, take out that geyser with leaf Storm!" he instructed.

"Snivy." The Grass Snake Pokémon nodded before she jumped up, spun on her tail as her body became surrounded by glowing green leaves, before she launches the leaves at the oncoming geyser, dissipating it and protecting Ash from what could've been an agonizing experience.

Ash smiles, "Thanks Snivy!" he said.

The Sandile he's holding slips out of his grasp, and just when he thought he was a goner, a hand grabs his arm. Ash's surprised look in replaced by a smile when he sees Hilda, who had climbed the Sandile bridge to save her fellow trainer.

Hilda smiles to Ash, "That was pretty crazy, Ash." she commented.

"Nah, that was _nothing _compared to some of the things I've done in the past." Ash replied modestly before looking over to the Pokémon. "Sandile, give it just one more push, 'kay?"

"Sandile!" The Desert Croc Pokémon nodded said before pushing itself upward.

"Awesome!" Hilda exclaimed as the Sandile rose up like a tower.

The Sandile then couldn't take anymore and promptly collapsed on the ground, the humans following shortly with painful thuds. Nontheless, they were all relieved that everyone was safe and sound.

* * *

Later, after everything was settled, we find Ash, Pikachu, Iris, Axew, Brock and Snivy relaxing in a recently formed hot spring.

"Well, son, what do you think of our brand-new hot spring?" asked Dan's mother, who was an fairly attractive woman in her early 20s, and shared the same hair and eye colour as Dan.

"I'm sorry the geysers caused us to lose our sand spa," Dan apologized. "But this is incredible!"

"The hot water feels awesome!" Ash commented.

"And relaxing." Iris added.

"Yeah," Brock agreed. "Five stars, without a doubt!"

The two other Pokémon merely spoke in contentment.

"Wow, thanks!" Dan said.

Then Ash heard Hilda's voice from behind. "Hey, Ash?"

Ash turned his head and his eyes widened when he saw Hilda wearing a purple, two-piece bikini bottom that fit her body perfectly. He couldn't help but notice how the bikini revealed a lot of her milky smooth skin and finely shaped curves. She had even removed her hat and let her hair down, allowing it to reach her waist.

"How do I look?" Hilda asked somewhat shyly, a faint tinge of red on her cheeks.

"Uh..." an-also-blushing Ash stammered trying to find the right words. "you look…just, whoa." He stammered, mentally slapping himself for his stupidity.

Hilda was surprised but then she gave a genuine smile. "Thank you, Ash. That's sweet of you."

With that, Hilda slowly stepped into the hot springs joining her friends, and positioned herself next to Ash, who's redness deepened from the close proximity before he quickly shook it off to avoid Hilda's noticing.

"We now have a brand-new attraction that is sure to bring in lots of customers by the end of the month." Layla said.

"Yeah!" Ash said, recovering from his earlier daze. "There's nothing more relaxing than a hot spring!"

"Hilda!" Iris added, nodding in agreement.

"On another note though, this reminds me of the previous adventures I had in the last region I travelled through." Ash began. "Although, that story was somewhat different than this one."

Realization dawned on Brock as he noticed what his friend was talking about. "Oh yeah, I remember. I wonder how they're doing right now."

"What are you guys talking about?" Hilda inquired.

"You see, when Brock and I were travelling through the Sinnoh region, with another one of our friends Dawn, we ran into one of her friends." Ash explained.

"Her friend, Leona, ran a hot spring with her parents just like Dan. But was unable to do so because the hot spring was no longing receiving its water." Brock chimed in.

"That does sound a little familiar." Iris commented.

"At the very least the hot spring having problems does." Hilda remarked.

"Anyway, long story short, the problem was being caused by Team Rocket and Dawn and Leona beat them when they combined Leona's three Swinub's Dig attack and Buneary's Ice Beam to take down their robot. The robot then froze, became brittle, and sent them blasting off again as we then soon enjoyed a nice relaxing rest in the hot spring." Ash continued.

"Sounds amazing." Hilda said. "Sounds less dangerous though since there was no mention of geysers there to put anyone in harm's way."

* * *

Later, it was time for the group to depart. They stood outside the resort with Dan, his mom, and the Sandile leader along with his followers.

"Thanks you very much for spa experience." Hilda said politely.

"But we gotta get going now." Ash added.

"And thank _you_ all for putting us back in business." Dan thanked.

"You're welcome to come back anytime." Layla said politely.

Brock suddenly got on one knee in front of a surprised Layla, and holds her hands with his mid-torso up.

"_My dear Layla. This needn't be goodbye forever. I humbly offer to stay by your side as you tend to your fabulous resort for many years to come." _Brock said, once again attempting to woo a beautiful female with his 'charms'. But instead, a sweat-drop appeared on her temple.

"Croagunk," the Toxic Mouth Pokémon said, preparing to do his job. But before jab Brock's rear with his toxic fingertips, a Pokéball opened from Brock's pocket and from it, a light materialized and Snivy appeared, surprising everyone with her sudden appearance.

"Sni." The Grass-type said, giving the breeder an irritated glare.

"Uh..." Brock couldn't help but be nervous by this sudden glare. "Something...wrong?"

"Sni," a green vine slithered from Snivy's collar "VY!" she suddenly slaps Brock's face, causing him to comically spin while he cried. "NOOOOOOOT YOOOOOOUUUU TOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Brock became so dizzy, he collapsed into unconsciousness.

A satisfied Snivy dusts her hands nonchalantly. "Snivy vy sni."

Everyone stared in awkward silence at what just occurred. Even Croagunk couldn't help but befuddled by another Pokémon doing his usual job of controlling his girl-obsessed trainer. After another five seconds of silence, everyone exchanged looks and let out an amused laughter. With that, the group were off. Ash, Pikachu, Hilda, Iris and Axew waved to Dan, Layla and the Sandile, while the still knocked out Brock was being dragged by his feet by Croagunk and Snivy, the latter holding Brock's foot with her vine.

_**NARRATOR: And so, a perilous adventure for our heroes ended with a little rest and relaxation. Now with a sassy Snivy added as a new member of the family, their Unova region journey continues.**_

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**So yeah, I decided to let Brock have Snivy in this story, and this Snivy is the same as Ash's. Think of it as an alternate timeline for when Snivy was given away by Professor Juniper. **

**Next Chapter will be my first original. Ash and co. Finally arrive at Accumula Town, where Ash can register for the Unova League, and he and Hilda are just in time to take part in a special event. It's also the debut of a certain hyper-active blonde.**

**Please don't forget to review.**


	4. The Accumula Town Battle Chateau: Part 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon**

**I'd like to apologize for taking long to update this story. I've been busy with other stories and school. But in my defense, out of all the stories I've written so far, this one has received the least reviews and it's hard to be motivated into writing more chapters when you don't get enough feedback. I do hope this chapter makes up for my absence.**

* * *

_**Chapter 4: The Accumula Town Battle Chateau: Part 1!**_

As Ash and his friends walked along a blue, crystal-clear river, they at long last make it to the outskirts of Accumula Town.

"There it is, gang." Brock announced. "Accumula Town."

"Finally," Hilda sighed in relief. "I thought we'd never get here."

"And now I can finally register for the Unova League!" Ash said with excitement.

"Pika-chu!"

Suddenly, a female voice catches their attention. "Out of my way, Out of my way, Out of my way, Out of my way, Out of my way!"

"Huh?" this causes everyone to look back to see the source of the voice: a tall blond girl wearing a green beret an orange blouse white shirt and skirt with a green bag on her should rushing towards them.

"Out of my way, Out of my way, Out of my way, Out of my way, Out of my way!" The girl chanted as she grew closer to the group.

"Heads up!" Iris warned as the girl continued running. She trips over a small rock and stumbles forward, trying to regain her balance. While Iris quickly jumps out of the way, she crashes into Ash, Hilda and Brock, knocking the three of them into the river. Pikachu was still on Ash's shoulder so he fell in too. The four swam to the surface and gasp for air.

"Ugh! What the heck?!" Hilda yelled, angrily glaring at the blond girl who ran into them. "Thanks to you, we could've drowned!"

The girl cringes realizing what she has done. "I'm so, so, _so_ sorry!" she said, repeatedly bowing her head.

"Hang on guys." Brock said, pulling out a Pokéball. "Snivy! We need your help!" he throws the Pokéball and Snivy materialized on land.

"Sni-vy." Said the Grass Snake Pokémon.

"Snivy, please use your vines to help us out." Brock instructed.

"Sni." The Grass Snake Pokémon nods and her vines unwrap from her neck and one by one, she wraps around the three humans and Pikachu. She helps pull them out, and they crawl onto the land, dripping water from their bodies.

While Iris makes a fire, Hilda tries to peel off her wet clothes behind a tree. '_Thank Arceus I have a second tank top under the one I'm wearing.'_ She said in her thoughts. She'd completely die of embarrassment if she had nothing on, and people were around, if you know what I mean.

Iris tosses them each a towel, and Pikachu hops onto Ash's bare shoulder. His wet fur presses to his cheek, and he chuckles.

"I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! I'm so sorry! I feel totally awful!" the blonde girl apologizes over and over again. Hilda rolls her eyes; this girl was starting to get on her nerves.

"Please, stop. It's alright!" Brock reassures her.

"Yeah, I mean accidents happen, right?" Ash added.

Hilda wanted to turn and smile at him, but she was afraid of her face erupting in uncontrollable blushes. One reason: Ash was shirtless.

She gets blushes even when I'm thinking about it. _'It's so awkward, but yet so...attractive. He really does look like the angel I compared him to when I first saw him in Nuvema Town.'_

Iris then asks the girl a question, "Where are you rushing off to anyway?"

The girl's eyes widened in realization. "OMG! I ALMOST FORGOT! SO SORRY AGAIN, BUT I HAVE TO GO! DON'T WANNA BE LATE!" she said frantically before she dash off towards Accumula Town.

Everyone stares in utter bewilderment. That girl crashes into most of them making them fall into that river, and then frantically apologists before running off just like that?

'_What the hell just happened here?' _Hilda bitterly asked in her thoughts.

* * *

Later after the bizarre delay, the group finally made to the Accumula Town Pokémon Centre.

"Nurse Joy. I was hoping if you could help me register for the Unova League." Ash stated.

"I sure can. I will just need you to touch this panel with your Pokédex." Nurse Joy instructed, gesturing to some sort of screen with a Pokéball symbol on the front.

Ash nodded, taking out his Pokédex and places it on the panel. A light emitted from the screen as it scanned the device.

Then a computer voice was heard, _"Ash from Pallet Town is now registered to enter the Unova League. Number of badges currently in your possession: Zero. We wish you the best of luck."_

Ash nodded and took back his Pokédex.

"You are all signed up for the Unova League." Nurse Joy said. "I wish you the best of luck." she said politely.

"Thanks." Ash replied before walking back to his friends, who were waiting for him in the lobby.

"Hey Ash, you all set?" Iris asked.

"You bet," Ash answered with a smile. "I'm all registered to enter the Unova League."

"Great!" Hilda replied. "Because now there's a place I think we should check out before leaving the town tomorrow." she requested.

"Sure. What is it?" Ash asked.

Brock showed Ash a brochure with, "While we waited for you, we read this brochure about a special attraction here in Accumula Town. It's called the Battle Chateau." The breeder explained.

Then Hilda said, "It was next to the poster for the Unova League. I was hoping we could go there to see what it's like," Serena told him.

"No problem! Do you wanna check out the Battle Chateau, Pikachu?" Ash asked.

"Pika!" Pikachu replied while holding up one its small paws and making a "V" shape with its fingers.

"Did someone say, 'Battle Chateau'?" a male voice suddenly asked.

The group turned to see a teenage boy who looked about the age 18. He had short, spiky brown hair, red eyes and tanned-skin. He wore a black shirt, red vest, blue pants, red and black shoes.

Standing next to the boy was a quadruped, canine-like Pokémon that was mainly black with a long orange snout and an orange underbelly. It has small, red eyes and a black nose. Around its neck is a white band with a small skull-shaped pendant on its throat. There are two white bands on each of its ankles, as well as three rib-like ridges on its back. It has a long, skinny tail with a triangular tip and three clawed toes on each paw. On top of its head is a pair of long, curved gray horns, indicating that it is a male.

"You know about the Battle Chateau?" Brock asked the boy.

"Sure do," the boy nodded. "And that when you win a battle at the Battle Chateau, the winning trainer earns a special reward." He explained.

"A reward, huh?" Ash said with a smile. "Sounds cool, maybe you're rewarded some kind of badge."

"Or maybe a gourmet dessert!" Hilda said with sparkling eyes. "That would sound good."

"You honestly think those are the type of rewards a Chateau gives out?" Iris asked with a sigh, "What a couple of kids."

"Ax-ewew."

Brock chuckles in amusement.

"Actually, the prize is a noble title." The boy informed them.

"Noble title?" Ash and Hilda repeated.

The boy then realizes something and laughed sheepishly. "Right, where are my manners? The name's Mike; Mike Shamock," the boy introduced himself "And this is my partner Houndoom." He added, gesturing to the black canine next to him.

"Hound." The Pokémon growled as if saying 'hello'.

"Houndoom?" Hilda repeated as she took her Pokédex out to scan the canine-like Pokémon.

**"**_**Houndoom, the Dark Pokémon. In a pack, a Houndoom with its horns raked sharply toward the back serves a leadership role."**_

"My name's Ash," the Pallet Town hero informed, "and this is my partner and good buddy, Pikachu."

"Pikachu!" the Mouse Pokémon greeted.

"I'm Hilda, I'm from Nuvema Town." Hilda said next.

"My name's Iris, and this is Axew." Iris said next.

"Ew!" the Tusk Pokémon chimed in.

"And I'm Brock; Pokémon breeder and doctor in training." Brock finished.

"So, what's this 'Noble Title'?" Ash asked Mike.

"It's easier to see it than to explain it," Mike replied. "Houndoom and I were just heading over to the Battle Chateau. You guys can come along and check it out for yourselves." He suggested.

Ash stood up, "Great, let's all go together." He announced before clenching his fist up, "It'll be the perfect warm up before I challenge to Aspertia Gym."

"Pika-Pikachu!"

* * *

Later, the group were now walking along a river-side road as Mike and Houndoom led them to their destination.

"There it is, lads and lassies." Mike announced when he stopped. "The Battle Chateau itself."

The younger group looked up in amazement at the majestic building; it looked more like a castle than a battle facility, complete with spiral towers and stone bricks. The only that seemed to be missing was a moat.

"Wooooow," Ash said in awe as they continued to stare.

"It's gorgeous!" Hilda added.

Iris then sees a sign above the entrance, "Huh, what's written up there?" he asked.

Brock read it and answered, "'Battle Chateau: Show your strength with a title'." He read.

Mike led the inside and they were awestruck by the interior of the building, which was just as majestic as the outside: Red carpet adorned the floors with expensive looking vases on pedestals against the wall. There were several doorways against the wall which the group assumed led to the rooms for battling. There were also huge marble staircases that led up to higher floors. There were several maids and butlers walking around. There were also a few other kids in formal attire that were chatting.

"Welcome the Battle Chateau, Beau and Dames." The group was greeted by a man wearing a very well trimmed tuxedo and bow tie, with a monocle on his right eye. "My name is Turner; and I am the supervisor of this Chateau." He introduced himself with a polite bow, to which the others replied with the same gesture. "I take it that this is the first time you are all visiting our fine facility?" Turner asked the young ones.

"Yes, it is," Hilda answered. "We saw your advertisement at the Pokémon Centre and wanted to see what you had to offer here."

Turner nodded. "Very well then, as long as you trainers have received a recommendation from a person of stature, I will gladly accept you in."

"Uh, a recommendation?" Ash asked in confusion. "I don't think we have received anything like that." He said to Mike.

The Houndoom trainer rubs his head sheepishly, "Sorry, mates. I guess I forgot to mention that piece of detail." He admitted.

"Doom," the Dark Pokémon visibly sighed at his trainer's ignorance.

"Perhaps you can call someone for me to talk to?" Hennessy suggested.

"I know!" Brock spoke up. "Ash, you can call Professor Juniper. Surely she will give us one!"

"Oh, so you know Professor Juniper?" Turner asked.

"You bet!" Hilda replied. "She gave me my very first Pokémon when I started out my journey as a trainer a few days ago." She explained.

"Well, that truly is something!" Turner beamed. "If you may, allow me to see your Pokedexes, which are good enough recommendation here at the Chateau. Professor Juniper wouldn't give someone a Pokedex she didn't deem a worthy trainer."

"That's great!" Ash said happily as he took out his Pokédex and gave it to turner, Hilda and Mike did the same.

After confirming their identities on their Pokédexes, Turner then handed them back to the three and clapped his hands together.

"Wonderful!" he exclaimed. "Will all of you be participating today?"

"Sure am!" Ash answered without hesitation. "If the Battle Chateau is as amazing as Mike said it is, I just _have _to try it out."

"This is my chance to have my _very _first battle with another trainer." Hilda added before taking out a Pokéball and looks at it. "I wanna see just how strong Tepig has become."

"I'd have to be insane to pass out on a battling event like this," Mike said with a grin. "You in, Houndoom?" he asked his partner.

"Houn-doom!" the Dark-type barked in agreement.

Ash looked at Brock and Iris, "What about you two?"

"Actually, we'll just sit and watch." Brock informed.

"Yeah, this isn't really my thing." Iris admitted.

"Okay, but you don't know what you're missing." Hilda teased.

Mike turns to Turner. "Looks like the three of us will be participating, Turner." He informed the gentleman.

"Splendid!" Turner said. "Now if you two gentlemen and lady will follow me so we may change your outfits."

"We have to change our clothes?" Ash asked as he, Pikachu, Hilda, Mike and Houndoom followed Turner into another room.

"Of course, the Battle Chateau is a very formal facility. It is a place for elegant trainers to display their skills, so so must be able to look their best by wearing very formal attire." Turner explained as-a-matter-of-factly.

Ash, Pikachu, Mike and Houndoom sweat-dropped "Er, whatever you say, Turner." Ash answered.

"Surely you want to look your best, Ash!" Hilda said; she was the only one who liked the idea. _'__I'll bet he'll look really handsome in a formal outfit.'_ The thought of it made her blush a bit.

Turner then led them to another butler and a maid. "I have two young sirs and a madam that would like to participate in our Battle Chateau today. Would you two be so kind as to escort them to their changing rooms?" Turner asked.

The butler and maid bowed. "It would be our pleasure, sir," they said simultaneously.

Hilda followed the maid down one hallway and Ash and Pikachu followed the butler down another.

In a guys' changing room, Ash and Mike were changing into their formal suits as Pikachu and Houndoom watched.

"Well we may have to wear these Mankey suits, but the battles will be worth it." Mike said to Ash.

"Not only that, but did you see the way Hilda reacted when Turner explained the tournament and how the Battle Chateaus work?" Ash asked "I think she might have finally found something she wants to do on her journey" Ash said.

"Really, and what's your goal for your journey, Ash?" Mike asked.

"Collect all eight gym badges and win the Unova League of course." Ash answered like it was obvious. "What about you, Mike? What do you plan to do as a trainer?"

For a moment, Mike seemed to be hesitant when Ash asked the question, "Well...I..."

Before he could answer, Ash suddenly felt someone grab his shoulder and put something in his hair. Acting mainly on instincts, Ash grabs the man by his arm and hurled him against the wall, holding the man's arm behind his back. Moments later Ash realized it was Turner.

"My my, for such a young man, you've got some impressive strength." the momentarily stunned Turner remarked. "I'm so sorry for sneaking up on you like that"

Ash released his hold on Turner, "Oh, sorry Turner, but what were you trying to do?" he asked.

"Combing your hair of course, it's far too messy for someone who's about to take part in the tournament." He explained before looking at Mike "Yours too, young man"

Ash and Mike sweat-dropped; the latter sighed, "Just get it over with already". He relented.

Pikachu and Houndoom couldn't help but snicker as they watched their trainers' usually messy hair get combed by Turner.

Meanwhile in the women's changing room:

"Here you are madam." the maid said as she handed Hilda her outfit. "I trust that you will find it sufficient for your battle."

The maid left to allow Hilda to get changed into the dress given to her. Once she was finished, she looked herself over in the mirror: She wore a long purple dress with short sleeves edged with blue frills. She wore stockings on her legs with elegant lavender flats to match, and on her head was a sparkling red headband.

"Wow! I look so cute!" She said to herself, winking at the mirror. "I can't wait for Ash to see me like this!"

She then walked out of the changing room, leaving her other clothes behind, and was led by the maid back to the front hall. She saw Ash and Mike were already back and was with Iris, Brock and Turner. Ash was wearing a white long sleeve button-up shirt with a red bowtie. He had on black trousers and black shoes with a black button-up coat. What stood out most to Hilda about Ash was that his hair was actually combed! As far as she knew, she didn't think she had ever seen his hair that neat, _ever_!

Mike was wearing a green tuxedo and pants, brown shoes and grey tie.

Hilda then went over to Ash. "How do I look, Ash?" she asked and did a light twirl for emphasis.

Ash looked pretty amazed. "Wow! You look great, Hilda! That dress suits you!"

The Nuvema Town girl smiled at the compliment. It wasn't quite the reaction she was hoping for, but it was good enough coming from Ash. "Well thank you, Ash. You look very handsome yourself! Especially with your combed hair." she giggled.

"Eheheheh, thanks. The butler made me do it, or I couldn't compete." Ash said sheepishly while rubbing the back of his neck.

Pikachu then snickered at Ash causing him to glare at it. "Hahaha! Laugh it up, Pikachu. Why don't I put you in these clothes and see how you like it?" Ash said which promptly made Pikachu be quiet.

"If I may interject, please. While you were changing, the match-ups were decided for this tournament. I would now like to explain the rules," Turner politely cut in. "Whenever you are at a Battle Chateau, you are assigned a rank. Since this is your first time at one, you both shall begin with the starting rank, Baroness for the young dame, and Baron for the young beau. In order to ascend higher and improve your rank, you must defeat trainers in battle. The ranks you can start with are Baron or Baroness, next is Viscount or Viscountess, followed by Earl or Countess, then Marquis or Marchioness, and finally Duke or Duchess!" Turner explained.

"Once you achieve that rank, you are given the privilege to challenge your own Chatelaines."

"What are Chatelaines?" Mike asked.

"In a way, they are like the Elite Four of our Battle Chateau for comparison. If you are able to defeat them in battle, you will receive a plaque, your picture on the wall, and a fabulous prize!"

"Awesome! I can't wait to get started!" Ash

"We even have gym leaders battle here occasionally. The higher rank you become, the more recognition you will receive, and the more you may capture the attention of a gym trainer or even someone of the Elite Four." Turner continued.

"I have another question, Turner." Hilda said. "Achieving the rank of Duchess seems like a lot of work to do for one day. How do people do it?" she asked.

Turner then chuckled softly. "Ohohoho! Dear dame, of course we don't expect you to do this all in one day or even in the same city! There are five different Battle Chateaus across the Unova Region. There is one here in Accumula Town, one in Castelia City, one in Driftveil City, another in Icirrus City, and finally, there is one in Humilau City. Whatever rank you achieve here will carry over with you to any Battle Chateau in the region. You are presented with a different ribbon and title card every time you receive a new rank for confirmation."

"Oh, that's good to know," Hilda sighed with relief. She couldn't' wait to start trying to ascend in the ranks. She was hoping she could impress Ash by showing she was a good trainer.

"So without further ado, are you three ready to begin the tournament?" Turner asked the young trainers.

Ash, Hilda and Mike nodded. "We're ready." They said in unison.

"Wonderful! Now if you'd please follow me to the lounge area where you can socialize with the other members. There will be thirteen other trainers participating in this tournament. It will be played out like a standard tournament; each trainer will face against one other opponent. The winner gets to move on to the next round while the loser is eliminated from the tournament. This goes on until only two trainers are left. The winner gets to move up to the next rank. Do you understand?" Turner asked, receiving nods from the three new participants.

* * *

Turner led them down a hall and opened some large doors. Ash and the others were amazed when they saw the lounge area. The walls were painted a light turquoise-green, the carpet was a nice shade red and light red. There were several blue couches and chairs, some around coffee tables; which had hot beverages and biscuits displayed on plates for the guests. A few potted trees, some chanticleers overhead, a set of stairs leading to an upstairs section, and even a small library.

"Wow, this place is incredible." Iris said.

"Axew-ew!" the Tusk Pokémon agreed.

"This has to be one of the fanciest battle facilities I've ever seen." Brock commented.

"Feel free to enjoy yourselves until the tournament begins, which is in an hour." Turner said before he turned to Mike. "Sir, you will be part of the first round, so you will be battling first in our single battle. Your opponent will be a girl by the name of Bianca. Good luck with your match."

"Thanks for the info, Turner." Mike nodded.

"Houndoom." The Dark Pokémon said.

"Can we stay and watch him battle?" Ash asked hopefully.

"Of course, good sir." Turner assured the Pallet Town trainer. "Just be sure to be in your battle room by your scheduled battle time. You will be in the third round." Turner answered. He then gave a bow and left the room.

"Alright, time to get my battle on!" Mike pumped before looking across the battle hall. "And I guess that's my first opponent."

The gang look to see who Mike was pointing at; a blonde-haired girl at the coffee tables eating biscuits and drinking tea, she wearing a formal orange and white dress. Their eyes widened upon recognizing her face.

"Hey!" Hilda said. "That's the same girl who crashed into us earlier!"

"Never would've guessed she was participating." Ash added.

"At least now we know why she was in such a hurry." Brock said.

* * *

The judge then stood in the centre of the room. "This is an official match of the Battle Chateau tournament. Both trainers shall use one Pokémon each and the match will end when one Pokémon is unable to continue. The winner shall advance to the next round while the other will be eliminated. Before the match begins, may the beau bow and the dame curtsy to one another," he informed

Mike and Bianca smiled at each other and bowed and curtseyed respectively.

"Now please choose your Pokémon," the judge called out.

"Okay! Time for battle! Go, Pignite!" Bianca throws a Pokéball, and in a burst of bright light, a bipedal, pig-like Pokémon materialized. Its chubby body is orange with brown bands around its shoulders, sides, belly, hands, and from the back of its head down its snout. Yellow bands encircle its wrists, and swirled yellow designs bulge from its chest. It has a red pig-like nose, pointed ears, and two pointed teeth that protrude from its lower jaw. Its hands have two claws each, while its feet have only a single nail. Its tail is curled with a tuft of fur at the tip.

"Pig-nite!" the Pokémon grunted, pumping its arms proudly.

"Huh? What's that?" Ash asked.

"That's Tepig's evolved form." Brock answered to him.

Now curious herself, Hilda takes out her Pokédex and scans Bianca's Pokémon.

**"_Pignite, the Fire Pig Pokémon and the evolved form of Tepig. Pignite's food converts into fuel for the flame that burns in its stomach, and when fuel burns in its stomach, its speed increases."_**

"Evolved form of Tepig? Wow." Hilda whispered to herself in awe.

On the opposite side of the field, Mike looks down to his Houndoom and smirks, "Go get ém, partner."

"Doom." The Dark Pokémon nods and runs onto the field, ready to face his opponent. "Houndoom!"

"Looks like it'll be a battle of Fire-types." Ash noted in an eager tone.

"Pipikachu."

"Indeed it is," Brock agreed, "however, Pignite is also part Fighting-type; meaning it has the advantage against Houndoom who's part Dark-type."

"Guess we'll wait and see how Mike and Houndoom plan to handle Bianca and Pignite." Hilda said.

"This match between Mike and Bianca will now start! There will be no time limit! Begin!" the judge yelled waving down both of his flags.

"Go Pignite, use Flamethrower!"

"Piiiiiiig," Pignite takes a deep breath, "NIIIIIIIITE!" he releases a powerful stream of red-and-orange flames from his snout.

Mike didn't give an order to Houndoom; he simply stood calmly. His Houndoom mirrored his composure as the flames got closer.

"Huh, why isn't Mike telling Houndoom to dodge or counter?" Iris asked.

Brock realized something, "Of course!"

Houndoom's entire body was engulfed by the flames, but he didn't so much as grunt in pain…in fact, he absorbed the flames into his body! Everyone stared; Ash and the group in awe, Bianca and Pignite in shock.

"HOOOOOOOUUUUUU!"Houndoom howled as his body glowed with bright red light.

"What…is…happening?" Bianca asked in shock.

Mike chuckled at her reaction, "Thanks for the pick me up." He said, confusing the blonde even more. "You just activated my Houndoom's Flash Fire."

"Flash Fire?" Bianca repeated.

"If a Pokémon with Flash Fire is hit by a Fire-type attack, that Pokémon will not only be immune, but their own Fire-type moves will increase in power." Brock explained.

"So that's why Mike let Houndoom take the Flamethrower." Ash realized "Clever tactic."

Mike's smirk grew, "Your Pignite's Fire attacks can't hurt my Houndoom, but my Houndoom's Fire attacks can hurt your Pignite." He said somewhat cockily to Bianca before looking back at Houndoom. "Show them a _real _Flamethrower."

"DOOOOOOOM!" the Dark Pokémon growled as he launched a larger stream of intense flames from his mouth, hitting Pignite square in the face.

"Nite!" Pignite grunted in pain from the attack.

"Pignite, no!" Bianca yelled in concern as the others started in both awe and shock. While Fire-moves don't normally do too much damage to Pokémon of the same type, Houndoom's Flamethrower somehow landed a critical hit on the Fire Pig Pokémon.

Bianca growled, "Fine, if Fire-type moves won't work, will try this: Brick Break!"

Pignite started running towards Houndoom, his arm glowing white.

"Double Team!" Mike commanded.

Houndoom's body flashed white before multiple copies surrounded Pignite, causing him to cease his attack as he tried searching for the real Houndoom.

"Oh no, we were so close! So close! SO CLOSE!" a frustrated Bianca cried while stomping her foot.

"Now use Shadow Ball!"

The real Houndoom opened his jaws and formed an orb of purple-and-black energy before launching it at Pignite. It made an explosive impact with the Fire/Fighting-type's belly, forcing him to stagger back while clutching his belly in pain.

"Finish it with Giga Impact!" Mike exclaimed.

Houndoom's body was surrounded in an invisible energy. A bright flash of yellow light appeared in front of his face and he faces towards the shocked Pignite. "HOOOOOOUUUUUUUNNNNNN!" the Dark Pokémon shot himself at the Fire/Fightning-type and an orb of light purple energy with spiralling light yellow streaks around it surrounded Houndoom's body and he slammed into Pignite. The force of the impact created an explosion that covered half the battlefield.

"PIGNITE!" Bianca cried for her Pokémon.

The smoke cleared to reveal Houndoom now standing in front of Pignite, who was laying on his stomach, unconscious and with swirls replacing his eyes.

"Pignite is unable to battle! Houndoom wins! Bianca is eliminated from today's tournament and Mike moves onto the next round!" the judge called out, waving the flag in his left hand and pointing to Joshua.

"Way to go, Houndoom!" Mike said as he went over to pet the Dark Pokémon, who growled happily in response. He then looked over at Bianca and gave a short nod before leaving the battlefield.

"Whoa! Did you see that?!" Ash asked.

"Pika!"

"Such incredible power!" Hilda added.

"That Houndoom sure is tough!" Iris contributed.

"Axew!"

Bianca went over to her defeated Pokémon, "Pignite, are you okay?"

"Ni…" the defeated Fire Pig Pokémon managed to say.

"WAAAAAAHHH! IT'S NOT FAIR!" Bianca whined as comical tears poured out her eyes.

The others sweatdropped at her excessive grieving.

"Don't think Bianca's taking the loss too well." Ash remarked.

"Pika."

* * *

It was now Ash's turn at the Battle Chateau. Across the other side of the battlefield was his male opponent; a boy about his age with simple brown hair and grey eyes.

"This is an official match of the Battle Chateau tournament. The match shall be one-on-one. Whoever wins shall advance further in the tournament. Whoever loses shall be eliminated. Before the match begins, may the beaus bow to one another," the judge said.

Ash bowed while his opponent did the same.

"Now, please choose your Pokémon!" the judge said.

The other trainer seemed to think for a moment before making his decision. "Tranquill, let's go!" He then threw his Pokéball.

In a bright flash of light, a medium sized, avian Pokémon that was grey with lighter grey and black markings appeared. Its beak and eyes were yellow, and there was dark pink marking above its beak that curved back over the eyes. It had a black, tuft of two feathers on its head and a petal-like arrangement of feathers on the nape of its neck. There was a black stripe on each of its light grey, black-tipped wings. Each pink foot had black talons. It possessed a long tail feather that was tipped in black.

"Tran-quill!" the bird chirped as it flapped its wings.

"Who's that Pokémon?" Ash asked as he pulled out his Pokédex to scan the Pokémon he was about to battle.

**"_Tranquill, the Wild Pigeon Pokémon, and the evolved form of Pidove. It is believed that a peaceful place without conflict exists deep in the forest where Tranquill live."_**

With his query answered, Ash puts the Pokédex away and looked at Pikachu. "Well, you're up, Pikachu. You can do it," the Kanto native said.

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded and ran forward to the centre of the battlefield.

"Come on, Ash! You can win it!" Hilda called out from the side of the hall.

"This match is between Ash and Justin with no time limitations! Begin!" the judge yelled waving down both of his flags.

"Okay, Pikachu! Let's start this off with a Thunderbolt!" Ash said.

"Piiiiikaaaaaa," the Mouse Pokémon gathered electrical energy into his cheek pouches. "CHUUUUUUUUUU!" and released it in the form of a powerful bolt of yellow lightning.

"Dodge it, Tranquill!" Justin yelled.

With swift aerial movement, Tranquill easily dodged the Electric-type attack.

"It's so fast!" Ash noted.

"Now use Steel Wing!" Justin commanded.

Tranquill's wings glow before becoming hard as iron and flies towards Pikachu.

"Intercept with Iron Tail!" Ash countered.

"Chuuuuuuu," Pikachu gathered energy into his tail before it was coated in iron and the two opposing Steel-type attacks collided before Pikachu and Tranquill broke apart.

"Thunderbolt, one more time!" Ash ordered.

"Chuuuuuuu!" Pikachu once again unleashed a power bolt of yellow electricity.

"Double Team!" Tranquill splits up into many copies of itself, and the Thunderbolt missed entirely. Pikachu looked back and forth at every one, trying to decide which Wild Pidgeon Pokémon was the real one.

"Don't be fooled by it, Pikachu!" Ash told the Electric-type, who nodded in response.

"Now, use Work Up!" Justin told the Normal/Flying-type.

Each of Tranquill's copies glow with a faint red light and steam, as if they're being charged with fire.

Ash raised an eyebrow. "What's that?"

"Careful Ash; Work Up is a move that raises the user's attack power!" Brock informed Ash.

"Tranquill, Aerial Ace!"

The Wild Pidgeon Pokémon dove down at Pikachue and flapped its wings once. Once it does, Tranquill moved so fast it became a blur and it slammed into Pikachu twice before he fell to the ground.

"Get up, Pikachu!" Ash yelled. The Mouse Pokémon cringed and shook, trying to stand up.

"Time to finish this," Justin said confidently. "Now, Tranquill, use Aerial Ace, let's go!"

As Tranquill charged for Pikachu, Ash yelled. "Pikachu, grab Tranquil!"

Pikachu did as instructed and grabbed onto Tranquill's leg, hanging on for life.

"Now, give Tranquill a throw!" then with incredible strength for a Pokémon of his size, Pikachu threw Tranquill the opposite direction. "Alright! Volt Tackle!" Glowing with yellow, electrical power, Pikachu charged at a fast pace and slammed his body right into Tranquill's torso. Ash smirked, just thinking of how much damage that move did. In the blink of an eye, Tranquill collapsed on the field.

"Tranquill is unable to battle! Pikachu's the winner!"

Ash cheered "Yes! Never doubted you for a second, Pikachu!" he praised the Electric Mouse Pokémon.

"Pika-Pikachu!" his partner replied.

Soon enough, it was Hilda's turn. Standing on the opposing side of the field of her was another girl slightly older than her, with blonde hair, teal eyes that matched her dress, and she had a determined look on her face. She definitely didn't look prepared to lose.

"Go get 'em, Hilda!" Ash called to his friend as he and the others watched.

"PikaPika!"

* * *

"This is an official match of the Battle Chateau tournament. The match shall be one-on-one. Whoever wins shall advance further in the tournament. Whoever loses shall be eliminated. Before the match begins, may the dames curtsy to each other," the judge said.

Hilda curtseyed while her opponent did the same. In her mind, she was both excited and nervous about this being her first battle as a trainer.

"Now please choose your Pokémon!" the judge said.

"Right," the opposing female said as she took out a Pokéball. "Scizor, let's go!" she yelled as she tossed the Pokéball in the air.

In a bright flash of light, a bipedal, insectoid Pokémon with a red, metallic exoskeleton materialized onto the battlefield. It had gray, forewings and hind wings with simple, curved venation. Its head is kite-shaped with three blunt horns extending above its forehead, and dark yellow eyes. Its neck and part of its thorax give the appearance of being exposed: they showed black skin, and were surrounded by its raised exoskeleton. It has a large abdomen with three black, pointed stripes below the waist. It has broad shoulders and thin, segmented arms ending in large, round pincers. Its legs are defined by large hip joints, thin thighs, and wide calves, its feet ending in one clawed toe in front and another in the back.

"Sci-zor!" the Bug/Steel-type hissed as it waved its claws menacingly.

Curious, Hilda took out her Pokédex to scan her opponent's Pokémon.

**"**_**Scizor, the Pincer Pokémon. Scizor's body is as tough as steel. It uses its eye-patterned pincers to crush any hard object it gets a hold of."**_

"Alright, here we go," Hilda then grabbed her own Pokéball and threw it onto the field, "Tepig, Battle Time!" she yelled and the red-and-white sphere released Tepig in a burst of bright light.

"_*snort* _Tepig!" the Fire Pig Pokémon grunted, releasing some embers from his snout and looking ready to battle.

"Using a Fire-type against a Bug-and-Steel-type oughta give Hilda the advantage," Ash stated smartly.

"This match between Hilda and Emily will now start! There will be no time limit! Begin!" the judge yelled waving down both of his flags.

"Okay, Tepig! Let's start this off with a Ember!" Hilda said.

The orb at the end of Tepig's tail glows orange. "Teeeee-PIIIIIIG!" He releases a large, spiralling stream of red-orange embers from his nose and at Scizor. While the attack did make contact with Scizor, the Pincer Pokémon didn't so much as flinch as it simply stood there and took the attack.

Emily scoffed at the weak attack. At that moment, Scizor raised its claws and waved them hard enough to dispel the Ember completely, much to the shock of Hilda and Tepig.

"Scizor shook off that Ember completely!" Ash gasped.

"Pika!"

"You're right," Brock agreed "Looks like Hilda's first battle as a trainer will be much tougher than we thought,"

Hilda was still shocked that the supposed super-effective move didn't so much as make Scizor cringe. But then she shook her head and her determination returned, "No, we can do this. Try a Tackle attack!" she suggested.

Tepig charged forward, ready to slam his body into his opponent.

"Scizor, let's show these amateurs a _real _attack," Emily said arrogantly. "X-Scissor,"

"Zor," the Pincer Pokémon nodded, "Sciiiiiiiii," Scizor flew towards Tepig and as it did, its claws glowed light blue. Once it was within the Fire-type's range, Scizor swiped its claws in an 'X' like formation creating light blue-and-magenta energy in the shape of an 'X'. The energy slammed into Tepig and sent him tumbling backwards.

"Flash Cannon!" Emily continued.

"Sciiiiiiiii," Scizor aimed its right pincer forward as white energy gathered in it. It then fired a powerful beam of white and pale blue energy from the pincer.

"Dodge it!" Hilda said in haste. Fortunately, Tepig responded in time and barely managed to dodge the Steel-type attack, which exploded behind him. "That was close, now use Flame Charge!"

"Te-Te-Te-Te," Tepig grunts as he repeatedly stomps on the ground until a cloud of dust covers its body. "Te-PIIIIIIIIIG!" Then, Tepig emerges from the cloud, covered in raging flames, amd was charging straight for Scizor.

"Leer," Emily said calmly.

"Scizor," the Pincer Pokémon said eerily as its eyes glowed red. Its red outline heads towards the charging Tepig, and when it hits, the eye outline disappeared and the same red outline surrounded Tepig, causing the Fire Pig Pokémon to stop in his tracks and cringe uncomfortably.

"Tepig, no!" Hilda gasped.

"Leer is a move that lowers a Pokémon's defences," Brock explained.

"Looks like Tepig's in trouble," Iris said worriedly.

"Ew," Axew agreed.

"Finish this off with Night Slash!" Emily called.

"Try an Ember attack!" Hilda called frantically.

Tepig prepared for an Ember attack, but Scizor slashed him with glowing purple claws before he had a chance to let loose its attack. Tepig was sent flying backwards and landed on his back, this time not getting up.

"Tepig! Are you okay?!" Hilda asked worriedly.

"Teeee….." he muttered weakly with eyes replaced with swirls.

"Tepig is unable to battle! Scizor wins! Hilda is eliminated from today's tournament and Emily advances to the next round!" the judge called out, waving the flag in his left hand and pointing to Emily.

"I can't believe Hilda lost," Ash said sadly.

"Pika-chu,"

"And she had the type-advantage too," Iris added.

"Ax,"

"Can't say I'm surprised though," Brock solemnly said with folded arms, "Emily's Scizor clearly has been and many other battles before this one. And type-advantage or not, Hilda's less-experienced Tepig wasn't strong enough to withstand Scizor's attacks."

"Well done, Scizor," Emily praised as the Pincer Pokémon walked over to her, "You battled valiantly as always,"

"Sci-zor," the Bug/Steel-type acknowledged its trainer's praise with a nod before Emily held out a Pokéball and Scizor was retracted by a red energy beam.

Hilda sank to her knees. She couldn't believe it. She never did the slightest bit of damage to her opponent. It had ended so quickly. "Tepig, return. Good job," she said sadly as she returned Tepig to his Pokéball.

She heard footsteps in front of her and looked up to see Emily standing smugly in front of her.

"The Battle Chateau isn't for amateurs, little girl," she told Hilda snidely. "Why don't you come back when you're all grown up?" she suggested mockingly, "Maybe by then, you'll be more interesting to battle," with that she walked away.

Hilda growled under her breath. Who the hell did that girl think she was putting her down like that over losing her first battle? Her eyes glowed with a faint blue light. Hilda quickly shook her head, trying to compose herself. _'No! No! Not here. Not now…' _she said in her thoughts. Thankfully now one noticed.

Except a certain Pallet Town trainer.

**End of chapter.**

**Once again, I'm sorry so updating late and even more sorry for making Hilda lose her first battle. But you can't get any character development without losing once in a while. Happened to Ash so it'll happen to Hilda too.**

**Mike Shamock is an OC that belongs to ****nWoreviewer****.**

**Here's everyone's current team for those who are wondering:**

**Ash**

**Pikachu (M)**

**Pidove (F)**

**Hilda**

**Tepig (M)**

**Minccino (M)**

**Brock**

**Sudowoodo (M)**

**Crobat (M)**

**Croagunk (M)**

**Snivy (F)**

**Iris**

**Axew (M)**

**Excadrill (M)**

**Please review, make suggestions about what Pokemon you'd like Ash and Hilda to catch in the future and I'll see you soon.**


	5. The Accumula Town Battle Chateau: Part 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon**

_**Chapter 5: The Accumula Town Battle Chateau: Part 2!**_

Ash, Brock and Iris met up with Hilda; the latter looked like she has been hit in the gut. Not that they could blame her considering she had just lost her first battle as a Pokémon trainer. Ash walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"It's alright, Hilda," Ash said in a comforting tone. "Everyone loses from time to time. It's what you learn from your losses that makes you a better trainer".

Hilda gave a slight smile and turned towards him. "Thank you Ash".

"He's right, Hilda." Brock agreed "With a little more training with your Pokémon, you'll be strong enough to compete in the next Battle Chateau we visit."

"Yeah, you shouldn't have to take your first lose to hard, okay?" Iris added.

"Thanks guys, I really appreciate it".

Later in another room Ash was facing off against a Baron named Jacob.

"Trainers, choose your Pokémon!"

"Pidove, I choose you!" Ash exclaimed, throwing the red-and-white sphere into the air. Bright light spilled out and formed the Tiny Pigeon Pokémon.

"Pi-Dove!" the Normal/Flying-type cooed.

"Magmar, let's go!" Jacob threw his Pokéball into the air and released a bipedal Pokémon with a red body that had yellow flame designs on it. A row of red spikes ran down its back, and there are two lumps on its forehead with a flame on top of each one. It had a puckered, yellow beak-like mouth and small eyes. Its thighs were yellow, and it had red feet with two, clawed toes each. Its arms were covered in rigid, red scales and it had red hands with five, clawed fingers. It had black, metal shackles on its neck and ankles. At the tip of its yellow tail had a flame.

"A Magmar," Hilda said with interest as she pulled out her Pokédex.

"_**Magmar, the Spitfire Pokémon, and the evolved form of Magby. Found near the mouth of a volcano, Magmar's body temperature is nearly 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit"**_

"Let's start this out strong, Pidove use Quick Attack." Receiving its order Pidove took to the air with a silver streak trailing behind it.

"Use Dig, Magmar!" Jacob ordered.

The Spitfire Pokémon dug a hole at high speeds to escape underground dodging the Quick Attack.

Pidove scanned the battlefield looking for any sign of its opponent when a hole opened up and out jumped Magmar, springing itself into the air right behind Pidove.

"Look out, Pidove!" Ash warned the Flying-type.

"Fire Punch!"

Magmar came down with a fist wrapped in flames, narrowly missing Pidove as it flew out of the way.

"Use Air Cutter!"

Pidove waves its wings, released blue blades of air, which struck Magmar consecutively just as it landed.

Magmar quickly recovered and prepared to counter. "Flame Charge!" Magmar became surrounded by orange fire then launched off the ground and smashed into Pidove.

The Tiny Pidgeon Pokémon let out a pained cry as it struggles to remain it the air. "Hang in there Pidove, use Quick Attack again!" Pidove's speed once again increased dramatically as a trail of energy followed its movement. Magmar jump out its path then watch as it circled around for another pass and dodged again.

"Alright Magmar, Flamethrower!" Jacob directed.

"Maaaaaag-Maaaaaar!" Magmar fired a powerful burst of flames from its mouth.

"Counter it with Air Cutter!" A white aura outlined Pidgeot's body then two rings of white orbs circled Pidgeot in an X formation then disappeared as Pidgeot fired a beam of energy that collided with the Flamethrower. Unfortunately, the Flamethrower's power proved to be greater and easily blew right through the Air Cutters, hitting Pidove and knocking it out of the air.

"Pidove!" Ash cried out for the Unovan Flying-type. He ran forward and caught Pidove before it hit the ground.

"Pidovce is unable to battle. Magmar wins."

"Pi…" Pidove cooed sadly, obviously upset about losing its first battle as Ash's Pokémon.

"It's alright Pidove, you did your best." Ash assured it. "We'll just have to train more."

"Looks like Ash lost too." Iris noted.

"The competition is really getting stiff". Brock added.

* * *

The Next match was between Mike and Emily.

"Go, Fearow!" Emily yelled upon throwing the Pokéball.

In a flash of light, the Beak Pokémon appeared in the air and let out a fierce shriek.

"FEEEEEEAAAAARRRRR!"

Mike stared up into the eyes of Emily's Fearow. Just by looking at it, it had seemed to emanate power and violence.

Mike looked at the Pokéball in his hand. Out of all of the Pokémon that he had, this was the one he was confident could beat a strong Pokémon like Fearow.

Mike threw the ball up into the air and yelled, "Flygon, come on out!"

Light erupted from the Pokéball and it materialized into what looked like a large, insectoid, dragon. It was primarily light green and had a pair of large rhombus-shaped wings with a red trim, toeless hind legs, and skinny arms with three-clawed hands. Its tail had several dark green stripes and three small green rhombus shapes with red trims at the end. It had large eyes, and a pair of green antennae that point back. The eyes have red covers.

It let out a mighty cry, "FLYYYYYYYY!" before glaring at the Beak Pokémon.

Hilda stared at the Ground/Dragon-type in complete awe. "Amazing!" she said as she pulled out her Pokédex.

"_**Flygon, the Mystic Pokémon. Flygon whips up sandstorms by repeatedly flapping its powerful wings. Because of this, it is known as "The Desert Spirit."**_

"Flygon versus Fearow! Begin!" The referee said to the battlers.

"Flygon, up into the air!" Mike instructed.

With a flap of its wings, Flygon took off into the air high above the battlefield at an unbelievable speed.

"Follow it!" Emily ordered.

Fearow rocketed up into the air after its opponent, causing the entire crowd to turn their gaze to the skies above.

Soon, both of them were at a standstill in the air, gently flapping their wings as they prepared to battle.

"Flygon, use DragonBreath!" Mike bellowed.

Flygon opened its mouth and released a light blue beam of air out at its opponent, who flew up further to dodge the attack.

"Fearow, retaliate with Hidden Power!" Emily directed.

Fearow's body glowed a transparent green before it put its wings together, and as it spread them apart, a green ball of energy began to form before the Normal/Flying-type fired it at Flygon.

"Knock it back with Dragon Tail!" Mike ordered.

"Goooon!" Flygon's tail glowed light blue as it struck Fearow's attack like a whip, sending it back at its opponent. Fearow tried to dodge, but the green orb ended up hitting its back. Fearow began to hurtle towards the ground before it managed to break into a glide. It landed back onto the field, looking up at Flygon in anger.

"Fearow, let's show it your Drill Peck!" Emily declared.

Fearow's beak began to glow white and it then flew up towards the Mystic Pokémon, spinning rapidly like a drill.

"Flygon, use Screech!" Mike said with determination in his voice.

Flygon shook its wings and they became surrounded in a white aura. They soon sent out purple shockwaves at Fearow, who stopped in mid-air. Its face became contorted with irritation as the piercing sound hit its ears.

"Now, Flygon, use Steel Wing!" Mike yelled.

Both of Flygon's wings took on a metallic glow as it flew straight at its opponent. Flygon struck Fearow in the chest with one of its wings and began dragging it down to the ground. With a quick flick of its wings, Flygon launched the Beak Pokémon towards the ground.

As it hit the ground, the battle field was suddenly filled up with a multitude of large cracks.

The others stared in astonishment at the power displayed in Flygon's attack.

"I bet that did a lot of damage!" Ash noted.

"Pikapika!"

After Fearow finally pulled its head out of the battlefield, it let out an ear-splitting shriek before taking back off into the air.

"Fearow, use Sky Drop!" Emily practically shrieked.

Fearow flew at Flygon at a blinding pace and grabbed its shoulders with its talons. They soared up higher into the sky before Fearow began a plummeting dive towards the ground. Just before they were about to hit the ground, Fearow threw Flygon at the field. Flygon crashed into the field.

"Now, get ready for a Hyper Beam!" Emily shouted.

Fearow opened its beak and began building up energy inside.

"Flygon, get up! Please!" Mike cried out desperately to Flygon, who was cringing in pain, "You have to!"

Emily appeared to be completely ecstatic. "Finish them!"

"ROOOOOOOOW!" Fearow released a devastating beam of pink-and-white-colored energy at its downed opponent, who finally pushed itself up and saw the incoming attack with wide eyes.

"DODGE IT!" Mike roared.

With a flap of its wings, Flygon narrowly evaded the Hyper Beam, which created a massive explosion in its previous spot. With a valiant cry, Flygon emerged from the smoke cloud and levelled itself a few feet in front of Fearow, the sharp glare from its eyes promised payback.

"Way to go, Flygon! Time to turn things around; use Tailwind!" Mike called out.

Flygon's body momentarily took on a white glow as air power was gathered to enhance its speed.

Emily gritted her teeth at her opponent's persistence.

"Get up to Fearow using Faint Attack!"

Flygon flew up into the air before disappearing and reappearing several feet above Fearow, who looked up at the Mystic Pokémon in surprise.

"Now, use Draco Meteor!" Gavin commanded.

Flygon began to glow orange and an orange ball of light appeared in its chest. The glow faded and the orange orb reappeared in front of its mouth. Flygon fired the orb up into the air and the orb then exploded, releasing multiple orange spheres at Fearow.

The Beak Pokémon attempted to dodge the falling meteors, but eventually, one hit it and sent it plummeting towards the ground, where it landed with an extremely loud _thud_.

As the smoke cleared, Fearow's body was seen lying on the ground. Its eyes were now swirled in its unconsciousness.

"Fearow is unable to battle! Flygon is the winner!" The referee announced.

As the crowd cheered at Flygon's victory over the Beak Pokémon, Mike walked over to the tired looking Ground/Dragon-type. After congratulating it for a well fought battle, he returned Flygon to its Pokéball.

"I guess we'll have to do some more training, huh Hilda?" Ash said.

Hilda sighed, "Yeah, I guess you're right."

After the final match of the tournament all of the contestants had met in the main hall. Turner was standing on top of a stage with the winner of the tournament: Mike Shamock.

"I would like to present the winner of this weeks tournament, Mike Shamock", the rest of the contestants applauded as Mike and his partner Houndoom bowed in recognition.

"As for the rest of you, I am pleased to say most of you have earned a rise in rank." A maid walked up to Ash and the others.

"I am pleased to tell you that all the males are now at the rank of Baron, and the females are Baroness."

"Awesome!" Ash said.

"That's great!" Hilda added.

* * *

The group had returned to the Pokemon Center. Hilda gave her Tepig to Nurse Joy, who graciously accepted her Pokemon and took him to the back room to heal him. She had told them that her Pokémon's wounds weren't very severe, which was a great comfort to Hilda.

While Brock and Iris had gone to their rooms, Hilda and Ash were left sitting on a couch in the lobby, the former musing to herself how she could make it as a trainer if she were always going to lose this badly.

"Hilda, are you okay?" Ash asked.

"I'm going to be okay, Ash." Hilda assured him.

The Pallet Town trainer was not convinced. "You don't look like you're doing okay. Hilda, something is bothering you and you need to tell me."

She sighed. "It's just, I can't help but feel I let my Pokémon down. I mean how Emily treated me and I let her get away with it. I mean how could I just let Tepig down?" She stated.

"Hilda, you can't people like Emily make you feel inferior. You may have lost the match today but you learned from it, you and your Pokémon. Your Pokémon know this as much as you should. They know you did everything you could and put all your effort into it, and in the end that's what really matters."

Hearing Ash say this made Hilda think and realize he was right.

"And Hilda, no matter what anyone says know that you _will_ become a great Pokémon trainer, and that you have a great relationship with your Pokémon and that's all that really matters."

Hilda's face started to blush.

Just then, the busy signal went off in the back room, signifying Hilda's Tepig was out of examination. Nurse Joy and Audino then came out with Tepig behind them.

They both went over to see Tepig almost as good as new.

"I was able to treat your Tepig with a super potion, you'll be glad to know it's back to full health." Nurse Joy smiled.

"That's great!" Hilda said as she got a happy look on her face. She then remembered she had something to do.

"Hey, Tepig. I'm sorry, I was really rash to put you into a battle facility for our very first match. I promise I'll make better decisions from now on." She assured the Fire-type.

"Pig," Tepig nodded. He trusted his trainer and was certainly not going to hold a grudge after one mistake.

"Thanks!" Hilda said gratefully before hugging Tepig.

After today, Hilda realized she still had a lot of growing up to do. Becoming a Pokémon trainer was a big responsibility. She would have to make a lot of rational decisions from now on and would need to mature in order to make it as a trainer. Maybe the loss was just what she needed to get her serious about her career as well. She had set out on their journey to become a great trainer, and that's exactly what she was going to do!

**My apologies but the long delay in posting chapter 5 and I'm certain that many of you won't have liked the chapter length either after the long delay but I WAS busy with college, plus exams. Besides, it's pretty hard to get motivated into writing more chapters with the lack of feedback I get from readers. Reviews are what motivate me after all.**

**My Pokémon story is**** just a side-story and my main story are the Ben 10 ones. Recommendation and request to all to read them and review. **

**Got any ideas; make sure to share them and if I like it, that one will be included in this story.** **This story will be updated upon the response it will receive so make sure to let me know whether this story is worth updating or not. Delay doesn't imply that this fic is dead.**

**Anyway, reviews and constructive ideas and critics are always appreciated. So, don't forget to leave a review. After all, we writers also need some motivation and keep us fuelled.**

**HOWEVER, I'm considering revamping this story if it doesn't get the appropriate amount of feedback. If this story doesn't reach at least 60 reviews by June next year, then I definitely might start over.**

**Ash**

**Pikachu (M)**

**Pidove (F)**

**Hilda**

**Tepig (M)**

**Minccino (M)**

**Brock**

**Sudowoodo (M)**

**Crobat (M)**

**Croagunk (M)**

**Snivy (F)**

**Iris**

**Axew (M)**

**Excadrill (M)**


End file.
